


Waking Lions

by Bittiface



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Gen, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Langst, Multiple Pov, Team as Family, eventually
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:42:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25599004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bittiface/pseuds/Bittiface
Summary: With the defeat of Zarkon, Lance finds he is not as needed as he'd always hoped he was; struggling to find a space for himself in a team that is growing more and more distant. A major mishap further drives this point home, as the already alien world he lives in is about to get even worse.- - -A post-season 2 AU. More tags to be added as the story unfolds.
Comments: 40
Kudos: 132





	1. Ocean Depths and Empty Halls

Team Voltron was a puzzle. A puzzle with an extra piece, and no place to put it. Team Voltron was fighting a war so far away from home that sometimes it felt like they would never see the blue planet they called home ever again.

Lance was the Paladin of the Blue Lion. Yet, Lance sometimes felt like that extra piece. Alien, unneeded, other.

Lance was many other things, according to himself. Charming? Funny? Talented? He used to think so, anyway. But out here, after months of war, he was having to face the reality of his own insignificance; his team was made up of brilliant geniuses. He, Lance, was terminally normal. A normal boy, far from home and all it's creature comforts. Late light convenience store runs, frantically cramming for a test eight hours before it was to take place, hanging out with friends. He missed his family, his mother's hugs..

He missed home. He missed feeling like he had actual potential. He missed feeling like he belonged.

Lance didn't really believe he was completely useless outside piloting a lion. He'd gotten good with a gun, but he wasn't the only one who could use one. Aside from that... what was there? He hadn't been a great prodigy at school, even if the school itself was fairly prestigious by reputation. He'd gotten into the pilot class because a spot had opened up, not because he was top notch himself. He'd replaced the humber one pilot, but that didn't make him the number one's replacement. No, the class already had the best of the best. He'd just squeezed in with average grades and passable skills. 

As much as he loved and wanted to be a Paladin? Sometimes.. sometimes he felt like maybe he didn't deserve it. Blue had chosen him out of the five of them, yet he wondered why. He'd thought, for a moment, that he truly was chosen. Special.  
He clung to that glory like a lifeline, clinging to his comrades and practically demanding their attention and affections. He'd be their cheerleaders even if he couldn't be the star. He needed to. If he ever lost this... then he'd have to admit that Blue chose him because the others were destined for something much greater. It would mean he was chosen as scraps.

These were his musings, as he sat on the grassy patch of clearing in full armour while Pidge and Hunk tag teamed building a weather station. Even out here in a remote forested planet, the tech wizards had a place in the puzzle; a cog in the machine. The whole team had come together to save a village from being melted by an abnormal acid rain. After weather proofing the huts, and building a fortress like wall to keep an enemy faction of the planet at bay, Shiro and Keith left the group to go hunting for something to eat that wasn't goop or stale water. Allura was smoothing over the final details with the village leader, and although Lance had eagerly offered to help her, or stand guard, or do something, anything please let me come with you... he was denied. It required finesse and a grave demeanour. Lance was urged to find employment elsewhere.

Feeling dejected and abominably useless, the blue paladin sat and pouted while rubbing out a scuff in his shiny white boot. He could have gone hunting with Shiro and Keith, but they'd kind of slunk off before he could even try to ask. It would have been a great opportunity to show them he could do something other than pilot a lion and flirt with girls. Had he ever hunted before? No, but was it really so different from battle? Just sneakier, right? He could do sneaky. He could do lots of stuff if they'd just open up a space for him.

Oh well. Better to stay here in the pleasant sunlight than be stuck with Keith,; or worse, get ignored while the two of them bonded. He'd really hoped to impress them somehow anyway, but there was no attention to be had while Shiro's favourite was around.

He glanced at Pidge and Hunk. He wondered how it would feel to have a friendship like that? To just get someone like they did; to work excitedly together, creating and enjoying an intellectual peer. What was it like to have a best friend? Lance had one once, but he felt himself slipping out of Hunk's radar more and more. They were great friends when all they did was order pizza, talk about school stuff and hang out. The dynamic had shifted out here in space. There was no place for a normal teenager in a war. 

Heck, it'd be nice to hang around people who didn't seem surprised that he could solve simple math problems. Geez, just cause he got nervous and forgot how multiplication worked once or twice, suddenly he's a dumb-dumb? Whatever...

Feeling even worse now, he let his misery rot within as he pouted at his scuffed boot.

"Lance, whatever are you doing?" The cadence of Allura's voice surprised Lance, scrambling to his feet with a squeak. The last thing he'd wanted was for her to walk in on him sitting on the grass like a six year old outfielder. "Hey Allura! Back already?" He asked with more pep than he probably needed to. 

She seemed to let his lounging slide, as she was now distracted by the large outdoor console Team Punk had made; some kind of weather station for the locals to help predict the next village-destroying Hell Rain. They were still working out how to pinpoint the cause of the environmental abnormality. Coran broke off from her, approaching Lance with interest.

"Lance! You seem to be doing nothing of importance. Mind helping out an Old Altean man with his ongoing encyclopedia database?" He held up a small tablet, bearing a screen filled with pictures of roots and herbs. "The locals here are skilled botanists and herbalists, and I thought we could do a little foraging! They've told me about some very helpful plants that we could store on the ship for medicine and food. It's also a great opportunity to see if that acid rain effected the plant life."

Coran, overall, didn't seem truly all that invested in having medical supplies or food stuffs that weren't food goo; it was more that he just wanted to go for a forest walk and take pictures and samples for the sake of learning. Lance sighed, wishing he could contribute to the team's mission here in a way more flashy manner. Such was life for Lance McLain, though. He was once again Coran's errand boy. 

Taking his own tablet from his utility belt, Lance followed along with Coran, half listening to the man prattle endlessly about all the rocks and minerals and plants and trees. He wondered how much of this was all true, and how much was just Coran making up nonsense based on his outdated knowledge. Seriously, alien planets were weird.

He thought instead about the things he liked about his team, in an attempt to pick himself out of his rather negative tumble from earlier. He loved hi-jinx with Pidge and Hunk when he did manage to squeeze himself into their attentions. They could be fun when they didn't exclusively talk about science. Heck, he missed when he had Hunk to himself. Once Hunk and Pidge started getting along so well, he'd sort of lost a comrade. Lance did like Pidge on her own, but he got the feeling she thought very, very little of him; Less of a peer, more of a brainless minion. Still, they did have some fun now and then. At least they both liked video games.  
Lance just missed knowing who he was, and where he fit in. He couldn't remember a time anymore that didn't feel like he was just talking into the void, feeling invisible in most conversations. He felt he got more attention from strangers than his own team. Alien girls flocked to him, and gave him the attention he sorely craved, even if it was superficial and fleeting. Any boost to the ego was fuel to live on. Speaking of cute aliens, he kind of wanted to visit that mermaid planet again. The beautiful blue water, swimming with real life mermaids, enjoying yummy food, and being seen as not only competent, but actually honest to goodness receiving positive feedback on something he'd done.

He wasn't asking for much. Lance just wanted his team to think he was one of them. He wanted to feel.. Respected. He'd first thought all he had to do was act the cool guy, the confident fly boy. But the more he kept up with the facade, the more his ego took a beating. Still, it felt better when he talked himself up in front of the gang. If they wouldn't be his cheerleaders, he'd have to take on the role himself.

He decided to try and get over this feeling for now, closing his eyes and breathing in the earthy smells of the planet. It was a lot muskier and mossier than a beach in Cuba, but it was definitely calming. A mix of blue and green foliage dotted the canopy, the mulch-y forest floor beneath him was soft and smelled inviting. The air was warm, and filled his lungs with energetic light. Maybe playing cameraman out here for a while wasn't such a bad lot to have. 

They passed a cliff ledge that looked out onto a vast ocean. The breeze was so welcoming, Lance removed his helmet for a moment to let the wind brush through his short hair. He breathed a sigh, admiring the sparkling blue waters that looked so familiar to him. The ocean before him was endless. Here on this cliff edge, he felt he was floating above it. Something inside pulled towards the churning waters below. Something out there was calling him. Something old and powerful. 

"Keep an eye out for any blue mould!" Coran called out. Lance flinched from his admirations, turning to Coran at the forest's edge and raised a brow. "Uh... why?" Was the mould poisonous? Sentient? Who knew what bacteria and fungus could do on alien planets.

"Just collect it for me if you find it!" He replied unhelpfully. "Use the specimen tube in your Paladin belt!"

With a shrug he left the ocean's side, bringing up a small set of tubes from the little pouches at his hip. Altean's and their wacky transforming inorganics.. 

After barely an hour of collecting and foraging, Lance was totally over being a jungle explorer. Taking photos of every leaf and pebble, jotting down names, numbers and locations, putting rocks and mould and what was unquestionably dung into test tubes, and listening to Coran sing off key melodies so awful he scared wild life? It was driving him mad. 

"Coran, are we done yet? I'm all nature-walked out." Lance grumbled, looking over his should with a longing sigh. He was dreaming now of a hot shower, or a bath. Yes, a long bath and then an equally long moisturizing routine. Y'know, proper Me-Time. The only person who could care for Lance, was Lance.

"Teenagers.." Coran scoffed with a dramatic shrug. "Fine, then. Let's start heading back."

The pair arrived back to the clearing to find everyone gone. Lance frowned. He had been endlessly preparing how to impress the gang with his Jungle Explorer aesthetic, and flaunt all the hard work he'd put into being a quasi-scientist. Alas, no one would know how rugged he could be. He'd have to save the poses and the adventurous tales for another day. The hapless sidekick gave a great sigh and followed the ginger headed man back to the waiting castle ship.

Once on board, he'd hoped he could dump everything he'd collected on Coran's lap and run off to see if Pidge or someone wanted to do something that was a lot closer to actual fun; something he could do with them and not be made to feel dumb. But the moustached gentleman grabbed Lance by the shoulder before he could even turn in that direction. "No games yet, my boy!" He chimed gleefully, dragging the paladin through the halls towards the lower decks. "Now we have to separate and organize them, and get them into proper storage. Chin up, Lance. It'll be fun!"

So now here he was, Lance McLain, the Paladin of the Blue Lion, standing inside a giant, echoey and bland white storage room, filing away roots and bugs and whatever by name and number. Matching photos to files in a computer database, physically scraping specimens into little dishes for later analysis. He was practically playing at being a full fledged lab assistant. Too bad he'd never in his life desired to be one. He wanted Fame and Glory in a flashy pop star sort of way. Who would look at a poster of Lance the lab assistant and think he was cool? No one, that's who.

If he'd only been faster at escaping Coran, maybe he could have convinced Pidge and Hunk to race down the castle halls on food trays, or find a lake to skip rocks on and see who could get the most skips? Maybe Hunk could whip up something nice with these new herbs. He wondered what they were all doing...

"Careful Lance!" Coran swooped in, catching a mistake before Lance performed it. "Mixing two different specimens in the same container could spell disaster! Is that from fungus group A or B?"

"They look the same.." Lance murmured, squinting at the flaky bark fragments in the container. 

This, of course, prompted Coran to educate Lance on the subtle differences of the two specimens, from colour, to minerals to other things Lance had no head space for. Nor any interest in. He was helping because he got roped into it, but at this point he was over being an errand boy. He wanted to call it quits and go to bed. 

But he stayed, finishing the job within a few hours. Whether he learned something or not, he wasn't sure. Lance dragged himself through the empty halls, his boots shuffling noisily against the smooth metal underfoot. His shoulders hurt from hunching, his eyes from squinting at brightly lit plates and tubes of leaves, grasses and what have you. He was hungry, thirsty, sleepy...

And Cranky. He was very, very cranky.

He decided it was best to have a light snack at least. Then he'd calm himself down with a multi-step beauty routine. Those were always nice. It made him feel taken care of, and it made for a nice task directed at himself and his own upkeep. He changed into his casual clothes first, just to feel more human and less Paladin-y, and then headed to the kitchen.  
However, as he sat down to eat a small bowl of goo, he felt his appetite shrink with his stomach. The silence of the empty kitchen, lit with a white glow that only served to make everything around him look sterile and lifeless. Robots and Space Ships and Alien Tech were every boy's dream; yet Lance was starting to feel sucked of all life from these bland surroundings. Yeah, the futuristic space ship was nice, but the whole aesthetic was overstaying its welcome. It would be nice to have weekends off or something.

He poked at the gel like goop, heaving a sigh as he could not even try to summon the willpower to force it down the hatch. He'd leave it out for the mice. 

As he pushed away from the table, he felt a sudden pull inside his mind. A call towards something that felt like home. A belonging. A sense that if he just let this feeling tug him along, he'd be better for it.

He walked back through the brightly lit halls, allowing this strange sensation bring up all the happy memories he had at the castle. His arms slung over his team's shoulders, sharing jokes and banter, giving his friends encouragement. Heck, he even thought fondly of some of the times they bickered. Once and a while, he even didn't hate Keith; so that was a thing. 

He opened his eyes and found himself in Blue's hanger. Had Blue brought him here? That pull, that feeling, had been very familiar, but he was sure it hadn't been Blue. She had a much different cadence in his mind. Maybe she'd been worried he was growing to hate the team, or maybe she worried he was going to leave them. Lance laughed at himself, walked over to Blue and laid a hand on her flank. "There there girl. Lance isn't going anywhere."

He decided what he needed was some fresh air. Blue had lifted his spirits, but he thought the fresh air would do him even better. So he gave Blue one last smile, and decided to take a night walk outside.

The night breeze was cool, and the smell of the deep forests nearby coaxed him away from the light of the castle. He could almost forget he was a soldier, a paladin. He could forget that he felt so alone and out of place. Out here, he was more alone, yet more at peace with it. He was one with the open air. He remembered midnights at home, sneaking out his window and spending hours gazing at the stars. They'd been so brilliant, so mysterious. A simpler time. An innocent time.

Before he knew it, he'd found the ocean again. He stood on a hill several feet from the shoreline. The waters were pitch black now, but the star filled sky and the ocean waves made all his worries fade away.

Lance laid himself down on the cool grass, and let his mind wander as he stared up into an endless sea of stars speckled between a canopy of trees. 

Maybe tomorrow he'd feel better. Perhaps all this fuss in his head was just an off day.

He closed his eyes, shutting off his senses, save for the pull and tug of the ocean. 

\- - -

He dreamed of flight. He dreamed of oceans. Flying, skimming the surface, feeling the rush of ice cold water lick at his toes. Then he dove, straight down into bright blue depths, deeper and deeper. It got dark. It got cold. The freedom and fun of flight became the sinking suffocation of tons of pounds of pressure from the waters above. Pulled deeper and deeper, he felt his will to fight back leave him. If he just let the cold and the water take him.. if he could just stop having to fight himself and let go, then maybe he could...

Lance awoke to a chilly, damp morning. Groggy, he rolled over and felt grass under his cheek. He was wet with morning dew. Had he seriously passed out outside? What the actual heck, dude? He sighed, and got to his feet with a wheeze. It felt like he might have a chest cold, with a heaviness in his lungs and irritated sinuses. While stretching out the kinks in his joints, he noticed something odd. Something impossible.

He could not see the Castle of Lions anywhere.

His stomach dropped. There was no way, no way they would have left him here, right? Surely they'd have done a final head count before leaving? Surely...

Lance breathed in deep, trembling and scared, but trying to calm down. "They'll notice I'm gone soon enough. Just gotta sit and wait!" He psyched himself up for the eventual attentions he'd deserve when they came for him. They'd apologize and treat him to back rubs, breakfast in bed, and maybe even his own cake. He'd even forgive them right away.. well, maybe not actually right away though, because what the actual F, guys? It wasn't even remotely funny.

With a great groan, Lance dragged himself to the village, in his still damp clothes, sniffling back a runny nose.

The villagers did not recognize Lance as a Paladin of Voltron. He cursed himself for having changed out of his armour before his walk outside. True enough, he'd not been with Allura and Coran for the visit to the village.  
Although he'd gotten a very cold reception after announcing he was a so-called paladin, a few villagers did grant that he was a traveller in need. With some reluctance, he was allowed to wait for his rescue inside the town hall. Given a rough blanket and a cup of warm soup, Lance sat forlornly, alone on a bench.  
The village itself wasn't tech savvy, but neither was it too archaic. It was made of mostly stone and mud, for reasons pertaining to the bad lightning and acid rain storms they got. How could a planet so rich smelling of forest loam be a hot spot for acid rain and terrifying thunder storms? Thankfully, this seemed to be an Off-Week for their terrible weather god.  
Aside from the stone and mud infrastructure, it also sported aqueducts, market squares and really pretty gardens. It was some fancy alien version of Rome, but smaller in scale. All he needed was the ancient hero treatment and he'd be set. However, he admitted not too many people seemed eager to talk to a hobo-looking alien boy who was sneezing every three minutes.

"They'll come back.." Lance grumbled, sipping on his now lukewarm soup. "Any minute now.."

\- - -

The sky got brighter as morning became noon. Colours contrasted more deeply as Noon turned to sunset. Blue to pink, orange to purple. An entire day passed. He slept on a bench, shivering in the cold. He wondered how long it would take his friends and team mates to realize someone was missing. "Maybe in the morning.. at breakfast.. maybe at training.. "

But morning came. And then noon. Lance stood dumbfounded.

How was it possible that no one had come back yet? How was it possible no one had noticed he was missing? Did no one miss him?

Dejected, Lance stared at the changing colours of the sky, cheek in his hand, and allowed his misery to seep into every atom of his being. "Voltron sucks.."

"Does it, now?"

Lance yelped, nearly jumping out of his skin at the sudden voice by his ear. He turned around to find a very tall being shrouded in a dirty cloak. All he could make out of their face was a wide toothy grin, and very long white hair.

"Apologies. I could not resist disturbing your ruminations." The cloaked figure strode leisurely around till he faced Lance properly. Lance rose to stand as well, not liking how much taller this asshole was than him, yet even standing he barely reached his shoulders.

"You're not one of the locals, huh?" Lance couldn't help but notice this guy was much taller than any of the natives here. The planet was fairly popular for travellers due to its market place and resources. However, Lance couldn't help but feel there was something odd about this one.

The figure gave a dry laugh. "Ah, no." A smile was offered again, close mouthed and secretive, "Just a passing traveller, interested in this planet's unique new weather patterns."

"Oh. Yeah. Acid rain." Although acid rain was putting it lightly. Voltron had visited a week earlier, when the worst was at it's peak. The smell had been horrid, and their armour barely withstood the precipitation's corrosive nature. The poor village had taken to hiding underground for a while.

The man continued, "Don't you find it extraordinary that this planet has some of the most fertile farmlands in this quadrant? And even with the increasingly acidic rain storms, the flora thrive? To think the acidic rain does not create toxic plant life, nor kill it outright. And the beasts here seem to have defences against it too, even though the townsfolk themselves seem to have little defence against it. They have told me those rains are not normally so vile, and that they ordinarily only occur in the deepest forests." He stopped here, looking down at Lance who looked less than enthused. "Does this not divert you, too? Are you not a traveller as well? Pray, where do you hail from?"

Lance would be more than happy to divulge personal information to a pretty alien girl. However, as pretty as this man was, he felt a little put off; almost like he knew this man somehow. "Do I know you?" His eyes narrowed, head tilted. Seriously, that cadence of his was very familiar...

The cloaked figure chuckled softly, "Maybe, maybe not. Well, if you aren't here on business, what else could you be doing loafing around a town hall for nearly fifteen varga?"

Lance gulped. This guy had noticed, huh? Yeah, a lot of the locals had given him the hairy eyeball the last few hours. He'd been here for far more than fifteen varga, after all. "I-I just..." His brow began to sweat, a nervous shame bristling his neck. He could not come clean and tell this stranger he was a Paladin who had been abandoned on a planet. Not just for his pride, but for Voltron's reputation. "I um..." But he could not come up with a quick lie, just a nervous tremor that froze his words.

The figure frowned, and seemed thoughtful. "If you're lost, I could try and help you.. My ship is nearby."

"Ah, um. No thanks! My ride should be here any minute!" Lance squeaked, gathering his borrowed blanket and empty soup bowl. "L-later!"

Lance fled, and tried to think of reasons why the castle hadn't come yet. It had been way too long.

"Maybe something's wrong.." He wondered aloud as he slowed his escape from Tall Dark and Alien. He began to worry. He was such an idiot. He should have tried to contact them right away; demanded to get that emergency communication device from the Chief. What if they were in danger? 

What if he'd been waffling on this planet, all that time, and Voltron had actually been in jeopardy? 

He ignored his hungry stomach and his worsening chest cold; racing back to the head of the village. He pleaded with them to try and get a hold of Voltron. The head chief gave the Paladin a wary glance, elven ears drooping in discomfort.

"But the device they gave us is for emergencies." 

"This IS an emergency!" After all, even if Voltron was not in danger, they had left a crucial leg behind.

\- - -

"So wait, you're telling me there was a quick-key for switching items and you're only telling me this now?" Hunk lamented, thumbing the controls of the too-small controller in his hands. The gaming system room was occupied by Hunk and Pidge, taking a day off from innovation and inventing to just relax and enjoy an Earth game for once. 

"I thought you knew!" Pidge argued back, popping another crispy treat into her mouth. Hunk had been creating snacks all that morning from the various food stuffs they'd traded for back on the forested planet, and it seemed to the two of them that the best way to try them out was accompanying them with some good old fashioned video games. They'd gotten through a good few hours of game play by now, and the snacks were running low.

"Hunk, we're out of Alien Pork Rinds."

Hunk paused and looked into the now empty bowl. "Told you to slow down on those, geez." He pushed a water pouch her way, and gathered up the bowl. "I think the second batch should be ready."

Leaving Pidge to take over the game, Hunk hummed as he made his way back to the kitchens. He passed Coran, who stopped the boy with a wave. 

"Hunk, have you seen Lance? He completely flubbed up these reports on the luminous tree mould I told him to collect. And I am one hundred percent sure he contaminated three different leaf samples."

Hunk raised a brow. Now that Coran mentioned it, he hadn't really heard from Lance at all lately. "Hmm... maybe he's sleeping in. He likes sleeping in on days off. And.. and on training days. I mean, just in general."

"Nope! I just checked his quarters. Completely empty. Oh well.. I'll just fix these myself. Now did he mean he gathered mould from section 2.5 or 5.2...." Coran mumbled as he went over mixed up digits in his notes, turning a corner and vanishing from view. Hunk drummed his fingers on the bowl he held, looking down the hall with a look of concern.  
"Aw geez. I never asked if Lance wanted to join us for games and snacks.." He'd been so caught up in the excitement of new food.. and Pidge had already been there with him. It just hadn't occurred to him to invite Lance. He hoped he wasn't upset about it.

Nah. Lance was dramatic, but he doubted the boy would be butthurt over a missed invitation.

Hunk stopped by the kitchen to finish up cooking, and then began searching the ship for him.

An hour went by. He'd asked Keith who seemed annoyed he'd even asked. He tried Shiro, who said he hadn't seen him, and insisted Hunk let him know when he found him. After all, he'd missed training that morning. Allura had the same reaction.

It wasn't until he'd tried every room, and checked the bathrooms and Blue Lion three times each, that he finally burst in on Allura and Shiro on the bridge. "Seriously, guys! I'm getting worried. Lance doesn't just disappear like this. I mean where else could he be?"

Just then a screen popped up behind Allura. Brows knit in concern, she flicked the message into the centre of the screen. "How strange.. that planet we visited the other day are sending us a distress signal."

"Already?" Shiro asked, crossing his arms. "I thought the weather barrier we made was working perfectly. Maybe that device we gave them is malfunctioning.."

Hunk scoffed, affronted that their machine wouldn't work. "Let's not go blaming the innocent tech just yet. Maybe it's a Galra attack instead."

Shiro and Allura looked back at Hunk, a comically befuddled expression painted on both their faces.

Hunk shrugged. "Or.. yanno... bugged up weather station, I guess. Whatever."

Allura grimaced. "We should head back to them immediately. I'll open up a worm hole."

\- - -

The planet looked fine. There were no Galra cruisers and when they flew down to the surface in Yellow, the village was peaceful. "Maybe it was a malfunction." Allura murmured over the comms, "Go ask the Head of the Village if he tried to contact us."

Keith and Hunk, in full armour, approached the town hall with great suspicion. This had to be a trap. Keith was ready for a fight at the drop of a hat. Hunk looked ready to book it at the sign of danger.

As they entered though, they were greeted by a strange sight indeed.

Lance was running toward them. He wasn't in his armour, looking a little worse for wear in wrinkled clothing, and seeming very alarmed. "Guys!"

"Lance?!" Hunk's jaw dropped, approaching the now slowing down approach of his friend. There was no way.. they didn't leave Lance behind, did they? Impossible! It had been a day and a half since they'd come here! Lance had to have jumped ship some time after they had, right? "I thought you were on the ship! What's the problem? Are the Galra here?"

Lance's alarm vanished; Keith and Hunk expected some loud retort, or a lot of screaming and whining, or some explanation as to how he got down here. But Lance seemed to deflate, as if he'd come to a very depressing realization.

"You.. didn't realize I was gone?"

Keith and Hunk looked at each other. How do you tell a comrade that you'd more or less not realized someone was missing for nearly two days?

But Lance got the picture without it being said. His posture sunk. If he'd not been around for a while, that was one thing. But on a close knit area of the ship, where sure it was easy to get lost... but..

Lance shook his head. No, this was fair. It was a very large ship, and they could go for days without seeing each other. This was just a small slip up. It hurt, sure, but it was completely fathomable. Fathomable and horribly disappointing. A taste of reality he'd not wanted to experience. He had to face the facts; aside from being chosen by Blue, he was not vital. Hell.. maybe he wasn't even wanted.

"N-nevermind. I get it." He ruffled his unbrushed hair, sniffing back his runny nose. 

"Oh no, you're not crying, are you Lance?" Hunk's hands came up, worried about how to comfort a sniffling friend.

"Huh?" Lance leered at Hunk for a moment, then scoffed, "Dude, I'm not crying. I have a cold. I left the castle the other night to get some air, but I fell asleep under the stars. Romantic, I know, but maybe not the best idea in hindsight."

Lance brushed past them, shoving his hands into his pockets as he headed back towards the Yellow Lion. "Sorry for making you think the Galra attacked. Let's go.."

Again, Keith and Hunk exchanged worried glances, before following after Lance.

\- - -

"You left the castle at night, slept outside-- do you have any idea how stupid and dangerous that was?!" Allura looked more distressed than angry, but it was censure that Lance was not happy to put up with. He could barely remember what had caused him to go out that night to begin with.

"No one said it was against the rules! I didn't mean to fall asleep! I was just star gazing, and it was really peaceful..." 

"Rules or not, I must say it was very ill-thought. There is still no explanation for the hazardous toxic rain, and the plant life on that planet can kill with one sniff! Didn't Coran teach you anything yesterday on your walk?"

Lance glanced at Coran, who seemed to be nodding along with Allura's council. Well, they weren't wrong, but this wasn't the 'big apology' he'd been imagining. Now, instead of feeling like the victim, he felt like a little kid getting scolded by his teacher. Maybe he'd been in the wrong all this time.

"Fine. I get it. Sorry."

"Honestly, Lance. We're fighting a war. I know Zarkon is gone, but please try to be more cautious. Those communication devices we give to allies are not toys."

Some time later, Lance managed to free himself from the council of wrist-slappers. Coughing, he slowly made his way to his own room. He'd never had a chance to even ask for some cold meds during that whole whipping ceremony.

He went straight to bed, flopping into the pillow face down. He felt gross. Sweaty, sick, gross. The thin blanket beneath him was not even remotely inviting, the pillow under his head was serviceable but not comforting. Military grade everything. This was not a glamorous castle. It was a war ship, and it always had been. "Why did I wanna be a pilot, again?" He murmured to himself, rolling onto his back. Why had he joined the garrison all that time ago? Because the stars were pretty and pilots get all the action, right?  
This simply wouldn't do. He was cranky and uncomfortable. There was no way he was going to get any proper rest.

"I'll go see Blue." He needed her soft comforts. Even as hungry as he was, a trip to the kitchen was out of the question. Hunk might be there, and he didn't want to see his face right now.

The doors opened onto the Blue Lion's hanger. There she sat, still and serene in the empty space. The silence permeated his pores. This castle was always silent. Always empty. He was still wound up from his altercation with Allura, feeling put down by the very woman he'd desired admiration from. He tried to let the heavy weight of nothingness ease his agitated mind, dragging his feet towards Blue.

He got inside, and let himself sink into the pilot's seat. In this cock-pit, he felt alive, powerful. He felt he had purpose. He thought with fondness of the link between himself and his machine, of the ease of flying with her through the air and water. Blue made him feel whole. Made him feel special.

Again, he felt his mind slip into dreams. Oceans. Flying. Sinking.

\- - -

Coran knocked on Lance's door for the fifth time with no answer. His brow furrowed, his moustache drooped. "Come on now, lad. You aren't still angry at us, are you?" They had maybe gone a little hard on him. Allura especially, since she'd been all riled up worried about the Galra, only to realize they'd all left Lance on a dangerously toxic planet and not realized for almost two entire quintants. 

He was ready to give up when Keith rounded the corner. "Keith! I can't seem to get Lance out from his room. I brought him some nunvill, since he seemed to have a bit of a cold when he left the bridge. I thought it might perk him up!"

Keith's nose scrunched up in recognition. He remembered the taste of nunvill all too well. "Um.. I'm not sure alien alcohol is the answer here, Coran." He replied as kindly as he could manage. 

"Really? Always helps me with a chest cold." Coran downed the glass in one swig, breathing a sigh of contentedness. 

Keith nearly gagged at the sight of it. "So, er.. Lance isn't in his room?" He wasn't missing again, was he? This was weird. The lanky asshole was usually poking around looking for attention. Then again, maybe not. He did recall seeing the guy wandering aimlessly once in a while, all alone. Perhaps even Lance liked time to himself now and then. Or maybe there was something more..

"I'm a little worried. Allura and I were a bit hard on him today. Never got the chance to apologize for leaving him behind."

Keith felt awkward, not knowing what to say. Thankfully, or maybe not, the alarms began to blare.

The hall's lights went from white to red, and Allura's voice rang loudly over the speakers;

"Galra cruisers have us in their sights. Paladins, to your lions!"


	2. The World I Know, It Falls Apart

Waking Lions 2

Lance was the first one in battle. He'd already been in his lion when the alarms went off. 

"Lance! Wait for the others!" He heard Allura's voice ring out over the communication line. 

"It's okay! I'll distract them!" He called out to everyone's surprise, racing out of the castle and breaking enemy lines with a shot of his ice beam. He was desperate to make up for his blunder. Desperate to be seen as a capable warrior, and not some lost child. Evasive maneuvers took up the remainder of his strategy, trying to lure the ships and cruisers away from the castle. He let himself and Blue glide as one, the controls in his hands becoming extensions of his own body. He pushed away all of his intrusive worries, and focused on flight and battle. He spun, he feinted, he did all he could. In Blue he felt capable. In Blue he felt powerful.  
It felt strange doing all this in his clothes rather than the armour; the suit he normally wore for this tended to feel pliant with every twister of his body. Jeans and a khaki jacket were a bit heavier in comparison. He felt less like a paladin and more like what he actually was; an ordinary teenager thrust into war.

He still didn't feel well, and his stomach was painfully empty, but he managed to put his symptoms at the back of his mind as he focused on the battle. It felt good to be doing something other than ruminating, allowing him and Blue to act in a way that was second nature.

He pushed hard at the controls, forcing Blue into a dive as two ships collided with one another. "Geez, I don't wanna see the repair bills these guys deal with." Seriously, it was like they could remake those unmanned fighter crafts on the cheap, with the way they seemed so disposable in battle. 

His team was only just starting to come out from the castle when a much larger battle ship burst through out of some kind of warp. It glowed with eery purple light, menacing and electric. It had it's sights locked onto Blue.

"No no no no.. Pull up! Pull up!"

Several other cruisers cut Lance off, many others launching tractor beams to keep him and Blue in place. The sensation of so many of them made Lance's stomach drop, like falling and never landing. "What's going on!? I can't move!"

"Lance!! Hold on!!" The other lions flew out to help him, but were left trying to defend themselves instead. The castle ship was forced to try and pick off the ships holding Blue, but often had to contend with its own defence as well.

Why me, Lance thought with panic. Maybe it was just that he'd been the first one out in battle. Yet.. it seemed so targeted. No, all in his head. He was so desperate to feel wanted he'd even interpret being targeted in battle as proper attention.

The giant cruiser blasted at Blue and Lance. The feeling permeated through Blue's armour, making Lance scream in agony. Every vein burned as whatever energy was attacking him corroded his very core. It felt like his eyes were bugging out of his skull, like a solar flare was burning him from the inside out. Blue screamed in his mind, their bond ripping at the seams. 

The beam fizzed out, and began to turn on the castle as it charged once more.

"No!" Lance croaked out, hands stuck on his controls, unable to loosen his grip. His whole body was stiff. He felt locked in place, having to pry every finger from its grip one at a time. He couldn't let the castle get hit with whatever had gotten him. "C'mon Blue.."

But the controls were dead. He could barely feel Blue in his mind, faint and fading fast. Crashing waves and a rumbling vibration was overtaking his hearing.

"Guys, I can't move! Protect the castle!" Green, Yellow and Black broke from their own traps and bolted through space to fight off the major threat. Red zipped through the waves of fighters, shooting blasts and fire while avoiding damage.

Lance looked through what functions of his controls did work. He could see outside, and the sensors, while weak, did detect that the ships surrounding him had not left. In fact, they were even coming closer.

What did they want with him? He was dead in the water! He was in danger of being captured for sure. He didn't want to go down like this. He wanted to be a hero. He wanted to save everyone... He looked out at Red, expertly weaving through and taking down multiple ships. His heart sunk. Why.. why couldn't he be more like.. more like..

He heard a deafening commotion. Turning away from his plight, he saw the others try in vain to stop the bigger ship from firing. But fire it did, catching most of the lions in the crossfire as it made a direct hit to the castle of lions.

He choked on air, his hearing popped. No way... But there it was, plain as day, the lions and the castle, lights dying, and the pull of the forested planet pulling them back down with its gravity. This never should have happened. If he'd just waited with the others, they'd have formed Voltron right away. Why had he tried to be a hero?

His eyes were swimming. He saw flashes of purple, systems shutting down.

He felt Blue faintly try to call him back. Such attempts flickered faintly, dying and leaving Lance with the dread of failure. He slipped into darkness. No more flying. No more oceans. Just emptiness.

Team Voltron... gone..

Because of him.

\- - -

Keith woke up to a flurry of warning signals. Flashing lights, warnings that systems were failing. The last thing he remembered was being hit with something, and falling down to the surface of the planet. The Galra.. they'd taken the whole team down. Were they going to enslave the planet next?

He had to get moving. He needed to stop the invasion. He needed to save his friends. Oh God, the castle. Allura and Coran.. were they okay?

Keith fought back queasy fatigue and tapped at screens and controls. Nothing was working, and soon enough all the screens went dead. Whatever that beam had done, it did it's job well. His Lion was out of commission, at least for now.

Groaning, he threw off his helmet, letting it clatter across the cockpit. Running a hand through his sweat damp hair, he tried to get his breathing under control. He was furious. They'd fought so hard, but they'd been completely outnumbered. "What the Hell was that weapon?" He rasped into the empty space, huffing at the silence he received in return.

Where was Shiro? Where were the others? He ripped himself from his seat, leaning down to grab the discarded helmet. Keith stomped down the escape ramp as he shoved the helmet back on. "Keith to the others, come in!"   
The sudden muggy heat of the forest hit him hard. He made a noise of discomfort, looking up at the darkening sky. No cruisers... but also no castle or lions.

"Hello?"

Nothing. Radio silence.

He hated this. He hated not knowing what was going on. Being alone was one thing. He could deal with that. However, Keith just could not handle the worry that the team might be dead or dying. They were the only family he'd known since...  
No. This was no time to get emotional. Shiro was alive out there. He had to be. Focus on one thing, and one thing only.  
Keith breathed in deep, and let out a slow breath. He could do this. With his lion of no use, and communications down, Keith knew to fall back on his survival skills. He'd learned a lot in school. He'd learned a lot on his own.

Gloves dug into the bark of a tree as he climbed, his boots giving him good traction, maneuvering up and up the length of it. He breached the canopy, and took in his surroundings. He couldn't even see the village from here. This place had to be very far from the proper side of the planet. He couldn't even see the planet's ocean. Just how big was this place? How far would he have to travel? Scanning the horizon, he looked for any signs of other lions having fallen. He looked for the castle.

He thought he could sort of make it out as a lump in the distance. It was coated in a dim glow of purple. The Galra might already have hacked inside. 

He looked to the sky, watching as dozens of Galra crafts descended towards the surface. He couldn't see the village from up here, but it was only a matter of time before those innocent people were enslaved or killed. This planet was a treasure trove of resources. No doubt it would be quickly depleted by the Galra's greed. Keith's blood ran hot in anger and shame. He had that same blood in his veins, but he knew he'd never do anything like this. He was thankful for the Blades; knowing that many Galra opposed the empire's ideals made him feel a little better. Maybe one day they would outnumber these broken factions; the dregs of Zarkon's rule.. 

Even without Zarkon around, there were still organized assaults like this. There had to be other powers at work. Maybe a new leader had already taken his place. Maybe that Prince that had plagued their recent missions..

Something caught his eye, and he looked up. Galra ships were descending onto the planet, groups of them in several different directions. Tracking their course, he finally spotted the other lions. Or some of them. Green seemed to have encased itself in a cocoon of vines and thorns. Yellow was wedged into a cliff face. Black was resting in a crater of it's own making.

Blue, he noted, did not appear among them. Keith grimaced. Lance had gotten hit the hardest by a direct beam of that weird energy. Had they abandoned the lion in space? Would Lance be okay?

His eyes flicked to Black, and a deep inset fear rooted into his belly. Shiro was in there. He couldn't bear to lose him again. The others were just as important, but...

No, Shiro was strong. Capable. He had to trust in him..

His frantic heartbeat throbbed painfully in his chest. All the Lions had landed a great many miles away from each other. How was he to begin helping everyone? The castle, the paladins, Shiro...

Still, the lions had barriers up. So long as those remained, the paladins inside would be safe for now. But the castle glowed an eerie purple, and who knew how long those shields would hold? 

Keith straddled a branch, leaning his back against the trunk of the tree. He had no idea what to do. He was the only one free, the only one capable of helping.. but there were too many people to save.

He had no clue where to begin.

\- - - 

Pidge chose not to focus on what she couldn't do. She focused on what she could.

She did not bother worrying about leaving her lion. Green had put up the shield as soon as shit hit the fan, so to speak. Sure, it was encased in greenery and the Galra were snooping around outside it, and sure, the Galra seemed to have stolen the Castle of Lions. But there was one thing they could never have.

Her. They'd never take her, nor Green. And there were endless ways for her to fuck their shit up without even having to leave her seat. The Galra were powerful, but she was smart.

She went to work immediately; fingers dancing furiously across screens as she hacked into every radio and communications hub within range of her Lion's reach. She kept separate screens monitoring the data of every downed Lion on the planet; Black, Yellow, and Red. She had the castle monitored too, and had a background algorithm keep tabs on all communications coming to and from the overtaken ship. She kept tabs on its repairs and its malfunctions. 

The only part that frustrated her was the location of Blue. Lance and his lion must still be in space. They were out of range. "Not for long.." She murmured, gnawing on a glove as she multi tasked and programmed and problem solved to the limits of her brain's capabilities. 

Her name was Katie "Pidge" Holt, and she never let a little thing like a hostile takeover keep her wings pinned.

\- - -

"...the pilot is nothing but a child. Scrawny and weak."

"But he took a direct hit from our new weapon, and he still lives. Perhaps he is special."

"Or his Lion shielded him from harm, more likely. Regardless, I'd like to see how it has affected him. Bring him to the lab."

Lance felt broad hands drag him up from his slumped position in the pilot's chair. Unceremoniously slung over the giant's shoulder, he was carried down a dark hallway. Consciousness was coming slowly; his awareness patchy. His eyes opened and closed, eyelids heavy with drowsiness. Even if he could fathom fighting his captor, his body felt too weighed down with exhaustion to even try. Every limb was heavy and unresponsive. Had he been drugged? Or was this still the after effects of that weapon they talked of? 

The one that took him and Blue down. The one that hit the castle. He couldn't feel Blue anymore. Something else felt wedged between himself and his Lion. Something heavy..

He knew he was in the hands of the Galra. Who else would it be? He fought to keep his eyes open. He could tell he'd not been bound. His hands and legs were technically free should he find the means to escape. But it seemed like his captors knew as well as he did that he was simply not fit to fight back right now. He wasn't even in his armour. His bayard was probably still in his Lion, if not already confiscated. 

Great, now he truly felt outstandingly ordinary; just a kid in jeans, currently losing a war. Maybe the others were right about him. Maybe he really was all talk; giving himself dumb titles and nicknames like Sharpshooter, hoping it would just catch on. Pathetic, really. A kid playing at being a hot shot soldier, with nothing to back it up. That bravado had cost him dearly now. Voltron was...

Lance heard more footsteps approaching as they moved further down the hall. Someone brushed past them, stopped a few feet away, and called out; "Wait!"

His captor stopped, turning around again.

"Bring him here."

That voice... it was so familiar.

Lance was brought forward, and shifted on the large shoulder he was perched on. "He's one of the Paladins. We got him out of the Blue Lion."

"A paladin? Him?"

Lance groaned. Sure, he wasn't in armour, and sure, he'd been easily downed in battle, but could someone in the universe treat him like a real threat for once? Was Blue wrong for calling out to him on Earth? Now he especially missed the Mermaid planet. He missed being seen as capable.

"I'll take him from here. You there; take him off the guardsman's hands, and follow me."

Lance was passed to another guard of some sort like a sack of potatoes. He gave a grunt of discomfort at the jarring nature of it. His limbs hurt. His nerves were over sensitive. His chest cold made breathing hard.

Without much ceremony, they were on the move again. Lance wondered if wherever he was going now was better than the 'labs' he had been headed to before. He was too deep in his own misery and weakness to give it enough thought.   
He coughed as they turned a corner, his breath rattling in his lungs, his face burning with fever. He really ought to have asked Coran for those cold meds during that lecture. Maybe then he'd be in fighting shape. Hell, even a small meal to curb his empty stomach. 

They went through an open door. Lance still wasn't able to see much from where he was draped like a suit jacket across a guard's shoulder. 

"Leave him here and go."

"Sir.. are you sure?"

"He's helpless and unarmed. Leave him here and bring me a medic."

Lance felt himself laid down on something soft, in a much more gentle manner than he'd been treated earlier. Footsteps moved away, a door swished shut. Silence for a moment or two.

"So, you were a paladin all along. Just what were you doing sitting around all alone on that planet the other day?"

Lance's eyes managed to open. His gaze flicked up. Vision blurred from fatigue, he could make out a tall figure. Long hair. Long ears. Purple. It was the man from the planet. The so called traveller with an appreciation for agriculture. 

It was none other than Prince Lotor.

Lance moved to shift himself away, his limbs stiff and nowhere near as responsive as he would have liked. His face was flushed with fever and he felt weak from not having eaten a proper meal in ages. Or maybe all that was an excuse for how scared he felt.

"Do not be alarmed, Paladin." Said Lotor with a lazy air, "I won't harm you, yet. You're ill, and I do have so many vexing questions to ask of you. Do rest."

It was him! The guy who was supposedly going to take over the empire. The enemy of the entire known universe. Zarkon's son, if what he'd heard was true. And now this prince was going to torture him for information, right? His fear skyrocketed, but something of that old false bravado came up to defend his quivering heart.

Lance grinned, some of his natural cocky snark coming to life inside his heart, "Nice try, nice guy. You won't get a damn thing outta me, because I actually don't know anything!" It was the first time in his life he felt good boasting about his ignorance. You can't torture him for information if he doesn't have any.

Lotor observed this outburst with a soft degree of amusement. "I agree. I have no doubt that a Paladin so easily forgotten on a planet for two quintants would have little to no information for me."

Lance's grin vanished. How did he know...

"After you ran off, I asked around the village about the strange young man who resembled a human. Many of the Paladins of Voltron are human, after all. Sure enough, they all told me you claimed to be one, needing to get into contact with Voltron after being left behind. I took this with a grain of salt. But sure enough, it was true. Tell me, Paladin.. With a ship that can create wormholes, leap across Galaxies in mere ticks, why is it that Voltron took so long to rescue their abandoned team mate?"

Lance's mouth was dry, his gaze wavering, his body quaking after being hit with this truth, from their greatest enemy.

"Are you not the leg of Voltron? Are they able to form such a fantastic weapon without you? Did not a soul notice you were gone? I can't help but point out it has not been since my father was defeated that Voltron was last formed."

His skin was damp with sweat. Was it nerves, his cold, or.. "Stop it.." He knew it couldn't be him who'd made it difficult to form Voltron lately. Shiro was...

Lotor fell into silence, observing the reaction of the Blue Paladin. Lance turned away from his sharp gaze. The door opened once more, and someone who had to be a medical officer stepped in. 

"Ah good. Now, Paladin. Don't give Yardak a hard time. She's only here to access your health."

Yardak, a stern Galra woman with a rather 'I'm so over this' look about her, approached Lance and immediately got to work. She kept an arm firmly planted on his chest, pinning him to the bed he was on. He squirmed under her, his foot coming to try and push her away. Unaffected, she raised a hand and used her fingers to pry open his eyelid. She peered down into his wide blue eye, clucking her tongue in disapproval. She then forced his mouth open by jabbing his side to elicit a yelp from him, shoving a cold metal object against his tongue. She peered down his throat, humming in thought.

Finally, she let him go, moving back to the armoured trunk she'd brought with her. Fishing around inside it for something, Lance took the opportunity to sit up. His head spun at the movement, but he wanted some kind of agency of his own for a moment. Lotor was eyeing him curiously. Lance shot him a glare. 

"What?"

"Nothing." Lotor smiled, looking away and out at the large windows overlooking space. Lance looked too. Stars in the thousands spanning a multitude of colours fanned out before them. It was beautiful.

Yardak returned, standing in front of Lance with several small devices. "Jacket. Off."

As much as Lance wanted to be obstinate and fight the order, it just became easier to acquiesce. After all this woman did not seem the joking sort, and she was clearly stronger than him. He levelled her with a leer at least, shrugging off his jacket and tossing it aside. "Shirt." She demanded. He groaned like a jilted teenager this time, and pulled off his shirt down over his arms. She immediately began placing the small devices on his chest, abdomen, sides, neck, and even temples. Lance squirmed as each one was added. "What are these things? Bombs?"

She gave him a withering stare, and did not bother to correct him.

Lotor was holding Lance's jacket with curiosity. "Odd garment. What function does it serve? Surely it can't be for anything related to battle in space. The pockets perhaps are meant for rations, I suppose.."

"Looks cool and keeps me warm. Drop it." Lance growled in response, his gaze burning a hole into the floor. Lotor chuckled, tossing the coat back onto the bed. Lance gripped at his raglan top in his lap, his face red with frustration.

Yardak moved away, tinkering with a portable device that seemed connected to the things that she'd placed on him earlier. As she busied herself, Lotor pulled up a black steel chair, setting it down in front of Lance. Sitting down and crossing his legs, he leaned in to have a private chat with him.

"Now then, while Yardak comes to some sort of conclusion regarding your health.. let's make my intentions clear."

Lance sat a bit straighter, trying to meet Lotor's gaze with some degree of pride and resistance. 

"I am a firm believer in fate. Our paths have crossed twice now. Naturally, I would have rather had your princess as my prisoner, but as she is currently down on that planet with her castle, you'll do for now. To think the abandoned boy I saw down on that planet, a boy who cursed the name of Voltron.. should happen upon my personal ship not a quintant later, and learn that he is in fact a Paladin? Fate had us meet for a reason, and I want to know what it is."

He said this as if Lance might hold the answer as to the why of it all. It was a commanding tone, with his dark gaze never blinking as he waited for the answers to leak from Lance himself.

Lotor smirked. "You could at least give me your name, if nothing else."

"Actually, I don't have to give you anything." Lance snapped back, crossing his arms with a swell of his chest. He raised his brow defiantly, daring the Prince to do something about it.

"Honestly, I could just call you Pathetic Lost Boy for all I care." Lotor retorted, "I merely offered an alternative."

Once again, Lance deflated. Space was making him flimsy in the sass department. How long ago had he last felt smug and satisfied with his own merits? "It's Lance."

"Lance it is then. Now was that so hard?"

Before they could bicker any further, a sequence of tones indicated that the machine had given its analysis of Lance. "Subject has a respiratory infection, coupled with fever and slight malnutrition." Yardak listed off, flicking screen tabs around as she read the information. "The side effects of the weapon seem to be a high concentration of quintesence in his nervous system. I may need blood samples to get an idea of long term effects. He also has a strange anomaly in his brain I'd like a closer look at."

"What? What's wrong with my brain?" Lance yelped, wondering what sort of anomaly it could be, but also worried what taking a closer look would mean to a Galra scientist. 

Lotor seemed intrigued, tapping his cheek as he switched his focus from the machine to Lance. "Interesting. I'll allow a blood sample to be taken. You can do a scan of his brain tomorrow. Nothing too intrusive, the poor lad is ill after all."

Oh, so Lance didn't get a say in whether someone took samples of his blood, huh? Well, he wasn't exactly an honoured guest, he supposed.

Lotor then stood up, towering over Lance who sat flummoxed on the bed. "Congratulations, Paladin Lance. You won't be staying here as our prisoner after all. You'll be here as our patient. Such luck." Lance didn't feel lucky. He was a mess of feelings and worries. He found it impossible to make jokes about it, or even muster up the energy to fight or even give Lotor a hard time.

"So quiet. You must be tired. I'll have Yardak finish her work with you, and then get you something to eat. You don't seem to have eaten anything of substance for a long time. No wonder you're quick to illness."

"I'm not quick to illness!" He argued, "I just slept outside, at night, on a planet known for toxic plants, warring tribes and acid rain."

Lotor snorted, turning away to try and hide his small burst of mirth. "Nevertheless.." He coughed, "You can have this room. I'll have it locked so you don't go wandering around licking anything that glows a bit too brightly. Goodness knows what humans are want to get into at night."

Chuckling to himself, Lotor left the room. Yardak, to her credit, was no nonsense, and got her blood sample quickly and without preamble. It was weird to experience the Galra like this, away from battle and tortured planets. He almost felt like an actual patient getting care, rather than a prisoner being experimented on. He'd barely flinched from the needle.  
A dinner was sent up, made up of strange alien cuisine. Lance ate most of it, finding it tastier than it should have been. Light clothing was sent up for him. At first he'd ignored it once Yardak left him alone, but the prospect of spending another night sleeping in jeans and a dirty shirt forced his hand. The new clothes were an ugly maroon, but made of something loose and almost like linen in texture. He would have preferred silky PJs, but Prisoners couldn't be Choosers, right?

At last, he let himself collapse onto the pillows. He sunk slowly into the foam like cushion. His entire body suddenly relaxed; every muscle and joint becoming loose of all tension. Yardak came back one last time, placing a cup of what looked like water by his bed. 

"Take this. It will ease the symptoms of your infection to help you sleep."

"Not gunna make me suffer and die of lung failure?" Lance asked languidly.

She didn't even blink. "No. Though I am in no hurry to see you completely healed, either. I'll let you cough and wheeze a few more days before considering a dip into a healing pod." With a flourish, she left the room again, seeming a tad happier having teased her patient.

Lance left the drink alone for now. Somehow, he didn't feel like anyone he'd met today would trick him into poisoning himself. After all, if they wanted to poison him, all they had to do was tie him down and do it. It wasn't like such things were beneath them. Still, he stood up wobbly, and paced the small room. It was plain, save for the large bed with very comfy pillows. The decor while simple had a sort of elegance. The windows were gigantic, taking up one whole wall. He tried opening the door out of curiosity, finding it locked fast.

With a shrug, he gave up. He was sore and tired. His cold was making him woozy, and it was getting harder to breathe. All he really wanted was comfort. All he wanted was his friends. His family. Homesickness hit him like a ton of bricks. On the verge of tears, the prospect of taking strange drugs from aliens didn't seem like a bad idea.

Lance drank the whole thing, slipped into bed, and passed out in under a minute.

That night, he did not dream at all.

\- - -

Under the cover of night, Pidge released her drones. Small little robots made from the scraps she'd stored inside her Lion for safe keeping. A day's worth of tinkering had produced three drones total. She sent one to the castle, one to the village, and one to Red, who seemed to be giving off the most activity in terms of it's barrier turning on and off. Honestly, Hunk would be proud of the fine little workers she'd made. 

"I hope he's okay." She'd not had quite enough parts to send a drone to every lion.

However, if that was Keith messing with Red, then she could rely on him to play the rogue spy. Her drone would carry her message, and her instructions.

She tucked herself back into her Lion, and began programming a distress call to the Blades, hoping beyond hope she could camouflage it from Galra radio activity.

\- - -

A small pod set down into the landing bay of Lotor's command ship. From within, the witch Haggar slowly emerged, accompanied by a small group of druids. Lotor approached them, flanked by his trusted generals.

The pair stared each other down for some time before Haggar spoke.

"You managed to take down the castle of lions, defeat Voltron, and capture a paladin. I must say I'm impressed."

"If you're here for something, I urge you to state your business outright. Flattery will get you nowhere."

"That paladin.. If we are to keep Voltron from ever forming again, its best to break whatever bonds they had with each other. Or, better yet, kill each one of them. This victory will be short lived if they find a way to take back Voltron."

"I'm still mulling my options, Witch." Lotor replied lazily, quite disinclined to agree too easily with Haggar's suggestions. "Turning Voltron against itself would prove tricky. Killing them might make them martyrs. And then there is still the matter of what to do with the Princess of Altea."

"You believe there would be a rebellion in the wake of their deaths? Just how much power do you think the universe could possibly use against us? The Galra have won battle after battle, conquered galaxies, for ten thousand years, we've known no equal."

"That can always change. Voltron saw to that by killing my father." His death was spoken like a mention of subpar weather. Zarkon's death meant nothing but an opportunity. "Now that our Emperor is dead, it's high time I lead my people to a new future. You'd do well to keep your head down. I've no need for your sorcery."

"Is that so?" The witch sneered, "Yet it was my weapon that took down the lions and the castle. I wouldn't be too quick to cast me out yet."

Lotor chewed on this. He had his own way of doing things. He was not his father. While he would not sink himself to being his subjects equal.. there were benefits to gaining to trust of those he wished to rule. Rather than fear him, he wanted his subjects to trust him. Great benefits came from such a relationship. The empire's over reliance on quintessence was also a cause for worry. He needed a more stable and sustainable source. To drain every inch of the universe's resources was folly. After ten thousand years of consuming endlessly, the toll was beginning to show. He wanted to rule, and he wanted to do it the smart way.

"Fine. Help me sway this stranded Paladin. Or, if you'd rather not, I could send you to the planet, and find some way to deal with the Princess and the remaining Paladins. The barriers remain on the downed lions, and while we have successfully taken over the Castle, we've yet to find the Crownless Princess within. She may be hiding somewhere."

Haggar thought this over, turning her head away as she weighed the options.

"I'll make use of your laboratory and consult with the druids. Once I've concocted something to aid your pet project up here.. I'll head to the surface in search of that princess."

Lotor nodded his head, and the two headed in separate directions.

Zethrid leaned close to Lotor as they walked, her massive brow furrowed in distress. "I don't trust that witch. She worked for your father. What if she's up to something?"

"I appreciate your concern. I'll have Ezor keep tabs on her. I'm not terribly worried about the witch, I'll be honest. I could use the help."

Ezor for her part perked up at the idea of tailing the witch. Zethrid seemed reluctant to allow it, but her girl was more than capable of holding her own, and she knew it. She simply preferred assignments that had them causing mayhem as a pair.

"It's going to get busy around here." Smiled Lotor, heels clicking with purpose down the dark halls of his ship.

\- - -

When Voltron had taken down Zarkon, they had nearly lost their leader. They'd found him in his seat, his whole existence flickering before their eyes. It had taken strong hopes and Allura's mystical powers to stabilize him enough to get him to a pod. Even then, he'd skirted the line between existing and vanishing. Weeks went by, with attacks from Lotor and vagrant Galra factions forcing the team to consider replacing him. It had been a month from Hell for Keith.

When Shiro did come to, stumbling from the pod, he was weakened. He didn't seem himself, almost like he wasn't whole. Forming Voltron was impossible.

But at least they had him.

A few days getting used to Black again, Shiro slowly got back to himself. A more muted version, but still there.

Keith stalked the dense forest, following a map he'd downloaded from Pidge's drone. Sweat dripped endlessly from his neck and temples. His breathing felt laboured due to the humid atmosphere. He thought endlessly of Shiro, worried that this new weapon had stripped the man of whatever was left of his fragile hold on this reality.   
But worrying would not yield results. He focused on his goal, on Pidge's map. 

According to her, Yellow and Black were stationary, with no changes to their shields. The castle was too dangerous to infiltrate quite yet. The village was too far for her scans. Inside a compartment in the drone had been several little output beacons. With these, she'd be able to scan more of the planet with the limited supply of power her lion currently held. 

"My Lion is healing too slowly. I think something to do with that beam we were all hit with." She chirped in her audio message, "Try not to enter your Lion too much. A team will surely come for it soon, and I need you active on the outside. I'll send more instructions anon. Later!"

It was good to know Pidge was well and active. It was good to have a plan.

Still, going on foot was torture. He would have preferred that hover bike the lions came equipped with, but that risked detection. 

As the hours ticked by, loneliness began to set in. His tasks normally would have kept him from feeling such a thing. Yet, having had what amounted to a found family for so long, now to have it ripped away? Ever since Shiro had been compromised by the final battle with Zarkon, the team had been drifting apart. He could feel the silence like a weight. He began to regret all the time he spent avoiding everyone; all the hours sweating through training exercises by himself.   
He'd get them back. He'd save them all single handed if he had to. 

And Shiro... Shiro just had to be okay. He would surely fall apart without him.

His heart wrenched tightly, his throat burning with the pain of losing him. Shiro had saved him. Shiro had taken him from desertion and made him believe in a future. Believe in Hope. Believe In Himself. He'd lost him once, and almost twice. Fate would not dare rip that man away from him. Shiro was family.

Keith was rudely taken from his train of thought by walking straight into a tree. He yelped, stumbling backward and regaining his footing. Had he not been wearing his helmet, he'd have konked his nose for sure. Keith wanted to get frustrated, but took this as a sign to focus.

He breathed in deep, held it. He breathed out.

A noise behind him told him he had company. In a flash of red, his sword was out, ready for combat. But what stood there was no Galra. It was one of the people of this planet. Elven eared, and looking a bit wild.

"Paladin.." He murmured darkly. Keith sensed that he'd best not let his guard down; there was a look in that man's eye that told him something was wrong. In fact, he was not dressed like those from the village they'd been dealing with. It was likely one of the denizens of the forest they'd heard of; the ones fighting for territory.

"You brought them here.." His voice wavered, his hands clutching at his sides as he struggled to come to terms with the forest being invaded by Galra.

"Listen.." Keith dismissed his weapon, hoping to placate the young man from his tremors. "Voltron is not your enemy. We can... I can help you."

Suddenly, someone gripped Keith from behind, locking his arms in place. "What-- Hey!" He bent double, throwing the new villager off of him. But another threw themselves at Keith. He had to be careful not to kill these guys, but he also needed to get out of here, fast. 

His helmet was knocked off as a villager swung a large tree branch at him, sending him down to the ground. 

"Hey! Knock it off! I'm here to hel--"

Thwip.

Something sharp and hot stung into his neck. Keith lifted a hand, feeling a dart plunged into the surface of his skin. 

"You sunnuva..."

His stomach turned. His vision blurred. Keith could not put two words together to save his life. He heard bits and pieces of conversation as the village men gathered him up.

"Appease the Gods.."

"Summon..."

"A Sacrifice is Needed.."

Keith tried to plead, tried to fight.

Darkness took him instead.


	3. Incoming Storm

Waking Lions 3 

They took her ship. They took her advisor. They took her Paladins. Was there nothing the Galra wouldn't strip away from her?

Allura had to replay the whole scenario over in her head as she slunk through the woods. They'd been hit by that beam that corrupted the entire castle's systems. They'd barely had enough control left to perform an emergency landing onto the planet. She'd been fuming, ready to face off against any commander that was about to come through that door. 

But Coran, selfless Coran.. Just as the doors would have been pried open by the Galran attackers... He'd shoved her into the Paladin chute, sending her down through what would have been the tunnel for Blue. She cried when she finally hit the bottom, clinging to her sides as despair wrought her soul. How could this happen? They'd been winning this war. Zarkon was dead. He was DEAD. Yet now it seemed as if it would all be for naught. Her father's legacy was in the hands of the enemy, and she was at a loss to how she alone could get it all back.

But she must.

Allura picked herself up, rubbing angrily at shed tears. She'd have to leave the castle. She needed to find the paladins. Supplies were stolen from Blue's hangar, doors pried open by pure brute force. How the purple hue that washed over the once white walls, how she was forced to break into her own castle's compartments; it was all fuel for her flames of vengeance. 

Supplies were packed into a bag. She looked heavily into the storage unit she'd been taking things from, a smile of fondness as she looked upon useless knick knacks Lance had stuffed into nooks and crannies; likely souvenirs from places they'd been to. He was surprisingly sentimental for a wise-cracking skirt chaser.

A frown pulled at her features. Lance had been hit heavily by that beam. She'd heard his scream, how pained it had sounded. She'd felt it too; the cry of the Blue Lion. Something had gone terribly wrong..

Shaking her head, the princess slammed the broken door closed and stomped from the room. 

The escape from her own castle had been harrowing and humiliating. She looked back from where she stood among trees, high up on a cliff. Her castle was a tainted vision, one that haunted and gripped her in rage and sorrow. "Coran.." She gritted her teeth, clenched her jaw, "Stay alive. Stay strong. I will come back for you."

Allura walked for a few hours, barely needing to stop for breath. She could feel the weak pull of the lions. They'd all been damaged; she could feel it. However, she could only sense four of them. Blue was nowhere nearby, or at least not powered enough to put out a signal of its life force. For now, she focused on where she would go first. The Green Lion was her destination. Pidge and Green had what she needed. Pidge would know how to get information, and Green had the means of putting out a signal to allies. She needed the Blades, at the very least. They were covert, and they were skilled. 

When she was closer to Green's location, she stopped short. A huge encampment of Galra were surrounding an enormous thorn thicket. Allura didn't have to guess at what hid within. Pidge had clearly used her Lion's abilities to create a tangled cocoon. That Green still had enough power to do so meant she likely had plenty to go around. Getting help should be a cinch.

What would not be easy was getting through those Galra to get to Pidge. She needed a distraction. Or a disguise. She needed...

Looking down at the clueless soldiers below her, she concocted her plan.

\- - -

Lance was terrified.

He was tied down on a gurney and taken to the labs. It seemed the no-cuffs treatment had ended, and the Galrans were not taking chances. He tried to hide his fear with quips and sass, but his heart was quivering like a leaf in a hurricane. Yardak had come for him that morning for the brain scan that had been discussed the night before. Still, once they got that scan, what would they do to him? The medicine he'd taken made him feel heavy and weak. Great symptoms to have when you wanted sleep, but not so much when aliens were taking you to a brain scanner.

He became much fussier once they arrived. He'd never been so scared in his life. Was this how Shiro had felt all that time ago? Giant purple aliens looming over you with strange equipment, barely paying any mind to anything you tried to say? They stuck probes onto his hairline, and against his neck. He became hyper aware of his increasingly short breaths.

He tried not to hyperventilate, and failed miserably. His feet itched to run. His fists burned to fight.

"Put him in." One of the burlier techs ordered to someone Lance couldn't see.

"Huh? Put me where?!" His legs fought against restraints as he tried to squirm away from the direction he was being backed into.

"The scanner, you dirt-for-brains." Yardak grouched, huffing as she closed a lid over whatever tube thing he'd been shoved into. The inside glowed a faint purple, but not much else could be seen. 

"Uuuuuh! Can someone turn the lights on in here?"

"He talks too much.." Grumbled a muffled voice from outside the tube.

"I need him awake for this. We can knock him out later."

Lance shut up after that.

The machine began to glow brighter from within, to the point Lance had to squeeze his eyes shut. He hoped Yardak had been truthful; that this was just a simple brain scan. Who knows what sorts of machines this lab had, after all. Maybe they could alter DNA, or replace limbs, or turn you into food goo. 

The humming of the scanner became louder. He saw flashes behind his eyelids. A roaring in his ears distracted him from his encasement. He almost mistook it for Blue, but it sounded deeper. Ancient. The heat of the scanner pod gave way to a wash of icy cool breezes. He felt a sensation of water wash over his feverish skin. Lance relaxed into these new sensations, allowing whatever power that lay within to overtake him. He sank into its embrace, sinking into the depths of his mind's ocean.

This ancient power felt so similar to Blue, yet it was easy to differentiate the two. There was the same power. The same embrace. He felt welcomed and engulfed in this entity's arms; as if, like Blue, this ancient power sought him out. Chose him.

As he sunk deeper into an abyss of dark blue, he was reminded of that inviting ocean he'd seen back on the planet. He remembered something calling him that night in the castle before he was led outside. Had this being that was holding him now be the one that called to him back then? For what purpose? Why Lance?

Eventually, the safe place his mind had pulled him to slowly released him. Once fully awake again, he found he was being wheeled back to his room. Had he done that on purpose? Or was it the strange entity that was clearly taking up residence in his brain? After all, that's why they'd done the scan to begin with, right? He must have picked up some strange hitchhiker back on that planet. Like a brain leech or a ghost.

Yardak was alone with him once more. She rested the back of her hand on his forehead, her brow cinched in confusion. "That's odd.. your fever has gone down."

"Isn't that good news?" 

"Hmm.." She made no inclination of agreeing or not, instead slowly removing his restraints. He sat up stiffly, rubbing his wrists and then his ankles. His earlier wiggling had chafed him something awful. 

"So, what did the scan say?" He asked curiously, leaving the uncomfortable gurney for the much plusher bed. It was, after all, the only real surface to sit on in the room.

"Coupled with the blood test, it said a lot. However, it's not for you to know. At least not yet. I'll be delivering my notes to Prince Lotor first."

Lance scoffed, "Seriously? It's my body! I'm the patient, yet I don't get any say in this?" Yardak gave him a peevish sneer. "You're more of a prisoner than a guest. Stop complaining. I'd watch my mouth if I were you."

But Lance was not her, and did not want to watch his words or his attitude. There was something living in his brain, and he felt he had a right to know about it. Lance wanted to voice his injustice, his pain and his thoughts. Yet there was a sudden feeling he had as he looked up at her unforgiving face; he just didn't want to continue fighting a losing battle. He didn't want to be shot down again. Again and again.. Shot down with every raise of his sword. Why was he so weak with his words? Was his conviction never enough? 

No, that wasn't true. Sometimes people did take him seriously when he made a sound argument. Keith even took his advice on a plan once upon a time during a mission. But that was work related, and as rare as his contributions were, it didn't equate to the issue now. No, what he was trying to win was his own autonomy in this prison. But Yardak was already gone, leaving the room for more important endeavours. He wasn't even important enough to announce her leave. No assurance of when he'd be called on again. It made him feel invisible; barely human at all.

He had to face reality. He was not an equal here; held no rights. That he was allowed a soft bed and filling food now and then was more than most prisoners ever got. His special treatment was because of Lotor's commendation. Or rather, Lotor's belief in Fate.

Fate. Lance scrunched his nose at the idea of it. What twist of fate had made them meet twice, once as unassuming strangers, and later as enemies? What fate had left him with an odd and ancient entity living with him? Was that strange presence the thing that made Lotor keep him here? Or because he was a prisoner of war? Some kind of hostage? Flippant curiosity?

He just wasn't sure. There were so many options. 

Lance got up after stewing in his thoughts, leaning against the cold hard surface of a window. He stared out into space, with no sign of the planet. They hadn't left it entirely, had they? Maybe it just wasn't on this side of the ship. What was happening with his team? Would they be safe? Were they fighting?

He imagined Keith, reckless Keith, slashing his way through roadblocks. Or Hunk, hiding in his Lion. Maybe Pidge was coming up with some ingenious way to hack into ships and computers. He thought of Shiro, of Coran, of Allura.

Hours ticked by, and it was difficult to pretend he wasn't lonely. The room was dead silent, and the absence of his team was raw and painful. He looked away from the vast expanse of space and into the room he occupied. Empty, hard, cold. Nothingness and a locked door.

His eyes burned, and his throat swelled with pain.

It was.. just so lonely. No one could possibly save him. He didn't even know how to save himself. He'd never see his team again. His family. His planet. A great gaping hole opened in his heart, and he sank onto the floor, his back pressed against the window. Lance squeezed his eyes shut, stifling the trembling thick sobs that fought to crack him open. Dreams of being a hero out in here in space fell apart at their weakened seams. It wasn't worth it. He'd done all he could, yet this was his fate. Useless. He was useless and he'd failed to protect his loved ones.

He didn't want to be a Paladin anymore. Lance wanted to go home. Yet he wasn't even sure if he deserved that much either.

\- - -

Shiro existed somewhere in between the mortal world and the astral plane. He was a floating thing gliding aimlessly. Awareness was scarce, save for disembodied voices that sometimes reached his ears. If he got too close to these voices, he could see flashes of violence, and shied away again. Those memories, were they his own? He wanted to separate himself from visions of torture, battle and dismemberment. 

Something called him. Something stern and unforgiving. Shiro stirred from his dizzying disassociation. He knew he was needed, and he knew he was avoiding going back to the horrible things that plagued his waking mind. He needed to get himself together.

Slowly, the weight of reality seeped into his atoms. He felt his fingers move. Eyelashes brushed against his skin. Dry lips cracked open to take a breath. Finally, Shiro opened his eyes.

He was back in the Black Lion. Located somewhere in a forest that looked like the planet they had...

Memories hit him like a brick. The battle! The castle!

Gasping, Shiro sat up, immediately pulling up status reports from Blacks's computer. The situation looked grim. Pushing down all his own worries and quiet suffering, the leader of Voltron began to think of what to do next. 

Once again, a deep growling voice spoke in his mind. Black? Shiro pulled back, resting in his seat. Ideas and images imprinted into his mind. Somehow, there was a power there that needed obtaining. Something he could do. Something only he could do.

Shiro breathed deeply and closed his eyes once more. He allowed the mysteries of the universe to pass through his body. He felt himself flicker. Black seemed to grow into him, combining until his mortal body simply disappeared. Now, with a mind awake and aware, he flew through time and space, searching for this power. A power to communicate from afar. He knew it was here somewhere, deep inside the Astral Plane. A place for Paladins. A place so deep he and the others had not even begun to fathom its origins.

\- - - 

Keith awoke with a splitting headache. Actually, everything ached. As his eye opened, he was met with mostly darkness. As far as he could tell, it was some sort of underground cavern. A tunnel with some soft light peeking through was all he could really make out. He grunted as he tried to move, but felt his hands and ankles bound to the floor. "Tch. Figures.." He grumbled to himself.

"Keith!?"

Keith quickly turned his head to the side, and was met with a large body laid out beside him. 

"Hunk?"

"Oh my God, man. I'm so glad its you!" Hunk sounded much more energetic than Keith felt. Perhaps he had been here longer than he had.

"What's going on, Hunk? Why aren't you in your lion? Where are we?"

Hunk had a rather long story to tell. After they crashed, Hunk had tried to stay in his Lion, but as Galra soldiers began to draw near, he felt it more advisable to flee and find allies. However, he was quickly captured. But not by the Galra.

"So these guys that kidnapped us? Yeah, they're the ones that have been making the acid rain."

Keith stared blankly at the shadow of Hunk. "That doesn't make any sense."

"I know, I know. It sounds crazy." Hunk reasoned, looking like he wanted to talk with his hands and be generally more animated about this. However, being tied down as he was, he settled for nodding his head. "They've been doing a lot of weird ritual stuff. Sacrificing animals and people from other villages to make weird shit happen. Seriously. It's messed up and I'm kind of freaking out."

The tremor in Hunk's voice made Keith wished he could try and comfort him in some way. "We don't know that for sure. They could be making it up... We're gunna get out of here, Hunk."

"I mean, I really hope so? 'Cause the way they've been talking sounds like they're gearing up for something really big. Like.. summoning an ancient god kind of big."

\- - -

Haggar locked herself away in the labs, pouring over the data mined from the Paladin's brain scan. An ancient power lay within, this much she could tell. His whole body had been oversaturated with pure quintessence, most of it matching that of the beam of energy she'd used to take out the Blue Lion. Yet that quintessence was being quickly trans-mutated into something else. A signature strongly similar to that strange energy camped snugly in the young human's brain. There was no ignoring her deep seated curiosity about how this would change the boy. There was no way she could even think of killing him or sending him to jail. No.. she wanted to see what lay in store for him. She wanted to observe. To manipulate. To experiment.

It seemed she'd be staying after all. The missing Princess would have to be someone else's problem.

She summoned her druids, tasking them with experimenting with the blood sample given to them, for now. Then, she got to work on the brain scan itself.

Yes... memories lay here. Memories, Personality Traits and so much more. Small little nuances that made up the individual known only as The Blue Paladin. She could read the data like a novel that detailed everything about him. Running simulations through her computer programs, she could see very clearly a thin shell of arrogance and peacock-style showboating. Underneath, he was a mess. Lacking confidence and fearing to be left behind in life. She could use this. It would be so easy! But how to keep Voltron from looking for their lost little worker?

Well.. it was all here, wasn't it? 

She could make another. She was good at that. 

One to throw off Voltron. One to take them out from the inside. One to keep Voltron distracted while she kept the original all to herself.

\- - - 

Lotor sat on his throne on the bridge of his ship, watching as soldiers and his generals poured over communications they were finally receiving from the captured Castle of Lions. There was still no sign of its princess, but they did have the advisor. He considered having him brought up to the ship, but thought better of it. No, he wanted to keep the castle's occupants far away from each other. The Blue Paladin and the Advisor, while not individually threatening, would certainly find ways to help one another. That was not to be allowed. 

He sent down a warden with a handful of other soldiers, instructed his crew to make calls to other factions of Galra still loyal to the crown as backup. Voltron was still very much a threat. Until they could say with all certainty that the paladins, lions and that castle were no more? He'd play it as safe as he could. Victory was not his quite yet. But it was certainly very close.

Lotor sat up just as a messenger came through the door. 

"Prince Lotor. Haggar has given her answer. She wishes to stay and help you with the paladin."

Lotor smirked, seemingly expecting this. "She must have found something she wants from him. It will help me all the same." He murmured mostly to himself, before nodding to the messenger. "She has free run of the labs. Give her all she needs."

The messenger bowed and left. He was alone with stray soldiers and Zethrid. 

"Ezor." He called,

She bloomed into existence from the shadow of the doors. "Lemme guess? Keep an eye on her?"

"As always, you anticipate me. The witch has her uses, but I don't want to give her full control. Give me hourly reports, understood?"

She nodded, winked and skipped out the door, vanishing halfway down the hall.

"Zethrid, contact Axca and Narti and have them go to the planet. I'd like them to keep a personal eye on all movements down on the surface." 

She got to work immediately, her clunky figure looming over her station. Lotor himself left the bridge, and walked languidly down the darkened corridor. His mind was buzzing. There was so much to do. So much to focus on. He trusted his team to do their best, but most of all, he trusted them to be loyal. They were the ones who would let him know as soon as anyone made an attempt to thwart him or do anything outside his orders. His father was dead, but the empire didn't exactly see him as a true heir. 

No matter. The throne was his, and he sought to keep his father's legacy alive; just not necessarily the same. Change would have to be slow and subtle to avoid treason or mutiny. 

With all of these things plaguing his every waking moment, it was a comfort that the Blue Paladin, for now, was mostly his own little project. Haggar would do most of the dirty work, with her sick little mind figuring how to best keep the boy from revolting; and more so take control of whatever strange power resided in his very DNA.

Yet Lotor could not help the memory that burned itself in his mind of a shivering, hungry looking teenager in dirty clothes, cursing Voltron's name.

There was something there. Something he could take advantage of. He just wasn't sure what it was yet.

"Fate." He murmured with a smirk, "Very well.. let's see what gift you have bestowed upon me. I'll bite."

\- - - 

Allura's patience paid off. A guard taking a nap on duty was relieved of his attire by a very grateful princess. Covering him with debris and leaves, she made haste towards the Green Lion, transforming her skin and shape to that of a Galra. With all of the chaos, masses of soldiers struggling to enter the thicket, Allura blended in. The only difference was that Green sensed her, and allowed her to sneak through the tangles, slowly making her way closer to the Lion.

At last, she found it, nestled deeply within the briars and thorns. She removed her helmet, breathing a sigh of relief. "This helmet smells foul. Don't those soldiers ever bathe.." She groused, climbing into the Lion's maw. 

Once inside, she soon found Pidge, surrounded in piles of blinking, whirring machines she'd built from scraps. The small girl was perched on her chair, slurping from an emergency rations packet as she awaited Allura.

"Nice going, Allura!" She regaled with a grin. "I saw the whole thing! I'm so glad you made it."

Pidge tossed aside her drink and flung her little body at Allura, who caught her with surprise. Returning to her Altean form, she slowly released Pidge down onto the ground again. 

"I can't say I'm surprised to see you doing so well." Allura said with a laugh, once again taking in the chaotic mess about her. "Please, tell me. How are the others?"

Pidge frowned, a heavy and grim expression that told her she wasn't going to give good news..

\- - -

Lance wasn't sure how long he'd been here. He couldn't fathom why he was still being treated so well. They'd given him back his clothes, cleaned and mended. He still kept the large, albeit empty, bedroom he'd been brought to initially. He was given warm, simple meals; usually some sort of food goo like substance, or food likened to porridge. He was given medications for his terrible cold, which apparently was more of a virus (thanks alien planet). He still hadn't been told what they found from the brain scans. It was a disturbing mix of being a patient and a prisoner. 

"If I were Keith, I'd have already beaten everyone up and escaped." He told himself as he lay in bed, staring at the slate grey ceiling. 

"If I were Pidge, I'd have snuck out, hacked the ship and escaped." He continued on, imagining how others would have done better, fought, or survived. More likely they never would have been caught like this. Hell, he imagined they'd have taken control of the situation the moment they came to. Or, worser yet.. if he had just stayed behind and waited when the Galra had attacked... if he hadn't thrust ahead of the group? Thinking he was some hot-shot pilot capable of taking on a fleet on his own? Hah.. Not him.   
He simply lay there, feeling sick and sorry for himself, and selfishly wishing the room had better entertainment. Maybe he could push his luck and make demands. 

The door opened, and Lance didn't even bother looking to see who it was. It was usually the nurse checking on him anyway. However, the heavy footfalls seemed to indicate otherwise. Only when a voice cleared their throat did Lance look over. It was Lotor. Strange.. the man hadn't really visited in days. What gives?

"What's this? The little Paladin is looking a bit depressed." 

"Yeah. Being held prisoner in a big boring room, having a fever that never goes away, and knowing that I wasn't strong enough to keep Voltron from being taken down tends to be a little bit depressing." Lance answered, his voice low and sharp.

Lotor's brow rose, "Prisoner? Now, now let's not get so negative." He smiled, seating himself at the foot of Lance's bed. "You're simply a patient with ties to our enemy that keeps us from giving you certain freedoms."

Lance couldn't help a smile, shaking his head as he stared up at the ceiling. "Right. How stupid of me." He huffed, resting his hands above his head. "Any chance you gunna finally tell me what's wrong with me? Or would that also risk crew safety?"

Lotor gave a hum, as if pondering the answer. "The medical lab is still debating the particulars. However, it seems the virus you have is some sort of life form, capable of great harm, or great power."

Lance stared bug-eyed at Lotor.

"Again, the debate is still ongoing."

"What kind of debate? That it's a life form? Or that it might kill me?"

"Yes." Lotor replied simply. He got up again, stepping to a wall and inputting some invisible code into a small screen. Several new things formed from out of the walls, including a dresser, a sofa and table, a large screen on the wall, and what looked to be a doorway. 

"Behold; You've been granted certain privileges. Instead of our soldiers escorting you to a bathroom, you've been given your own." He said as he gestured to the new doorway. Lance felt that had less to do with being nice to him, and more to do with not wasting the soldiers time. But at least he could piss and bathe in private now.  
"That dresser contains some changes of clothing and undergarments you might require, as well as tablets with reading material. The screen has limited access to camera feeds around the ship, and you may also use it to display entertainment programs. We know very little of Earth, so you'll have to make due with what we have."

Lotor smirked at Lance, who had sat up from bed. Lance furrowed his brows, feelings overwhelming his distressed mind. "Why are you being nice to me?"

The man frowned. "I've no reason not to be. You don't pose a threat, after all."

Not a threat.

An insult whether Lotor meant it or not. That's why he wasn't in chains. That's why he hadn't been threatened. What happened to him? Was he always this useless? Couldn't he try and be the Paladin the universe needed? Maybe he was never that Paladin. Maybe four was fine, and he was just a poor excuse in reserve.

All he felt was hurt. All he felt was weak. He'd not once attempted to fight. Not once attempted escape. He'd given up, because.. he had no faith in his ability to succeed, which was probably as much faith in his abilities anyone ever had in him; He was weak in the Prince's eyes. Weak in his team's eyes. Lance felt his heart drop to the floor. No one really needed him. No one saw him as equal or capable, to the point he could be left abandoned and no one cared.

"I seem to have injured your pride. I apologize." Lotor murmured gravely. He left Lance to his thoughts, but came back some minutes later with food. "Come away from that bed and have some dinner. You'll waste away."

Lance looked up, and peeled himself from the large bed that had been his home these past couple days. He sat on the couch, staring down at the strange meal before him. It smelled good, if a bit strange. Better than goo, but still alien.

"Now then," Lotor began, sitting in a chair across from Lance and cutting into his meal, "Let's try and start this relationship from the top."

Lance chewed on the food for a bit, letting the flavour adjust on his tongue. It wasn't bad. It had more kick than the tasteless goop he'd been getting. He had no idea what Lotor was playing at. He didn't actually want to form an alliance with him, did he? The guy had tried to kill them before; stalked them during the time they'd struggled without Shiro. Yet now it seemed like he was trying to be friendly. Was this because he knew Lance couldn't.. no, wouldn't fight back? Or something else entirely?

"What's your end game here?" Lance demanded, setting down his utensil with a clatter. "Why try and earn my trust? I get you don't find me threatening, since I don't have my bayard or Lion or any of my team.. But we're obviously enemies."

"But we don't have to be, Lance." Lotor replied seriously, his eyes imploring Lance for patience. "My father is dead, and with that death comes a chance for reformation and eventual peace."

"Seriously?" Lance leaned forward, both hands on his knees as he glares at the prince before him. "You expect me to believe that? You're the Prince of the Galra! AND you took down Voltron; the very symbol of peace and the saviour of the entire universe! I'm not that dumb! You'll have to try way harder than that to trick me." He folded his arms, stubbornly hiding a cough behind closed lips. His outburst had felt good mentally, but it had made his condition a little bothered.

Lotor held up his hands placatingly. "Do be calm, Lance. I have much to explain. Please don't irritate yourself." He laid his hands in his lap, the both of them pointedly ignoring their food. "To convince the entire Galra army that we should work with Voltron and create a peaceful universe would never work. You should know this."

Lance said nothing, lowering his gaze as Lotor continued.

"I must do what is necessary to please the empire, and they have lived the same way for ten thousand years. The changes I wish to make must come slowly."

Lance had to admit he had a point. After all, if the Galran empire wanted change, if it wanted to work alongside the universe for peace? It would have done so a long time ago. He gave a defeated sigh, and tried to eat his meal again.

"That being said, Lance.. I do still wish to set things right. I could work with Voltron, even if not right away. And I'd like to start with you."

"Why me? Why not Allura? She's the Princess.."

"True, but she's..." Missing was what he wanted to say, but he didn't wish to alarm Lance yet. He'd have to be careful with how much information he gave. "Communication with the planet is slow.. Let's just build a truce between us in the meantime, hm? Is there anything I can do to make you more willing to work with me?"

Lance could think of a thousand things. Many selfish. Many impossible. Lotor insisted he was an ally, but he'd not given him much information. Still, what the prince had said made sense. Lance didn't feel like he was the right guy for this job, as he worried peace negotiations by himself would step on Allura's toes. But he desperately wanted to do something to prove himself. Whether Lotor truly wanted his help.. whether he simply saw Lance as gullible..

"Fine. Just.. If you get inside the castle? Feed Kaltenecker."

"....I'm sorry, who?"

\- - - 

Haggar smirked within her dim lit lab. It certainly paid to have spies that gave her access to visual and audio feeds. Listening in on the conversation between the prince and the paladin had been very educational. She added what she'd learned to data she already had, building a fine web of information. She was beginning to understand. Understand Lotor. Understand Lance, and all of the small intricacies that made up his vulnerable little mind. He was certainly not the strongest member of Voltron, but that would make him the easiest to mould and manipulate. 

She turned from her monitor and slunk languidly towards a row of tall tubular forms, each filled with glowing liquid. "We're almost ready to build." She rasped to one of the technicians in her employ. "If the paladins manage to find each other and fight back.. we'll have a weapon of our own at the ready."

\- - -

Keith and Hunk saw sunlight for the first time in days. And according to Hunk, it may very well be their very last day alive. As they were bound in chains to posts in a clearing, Keith stared in horror at the dried blood staining the ground beneath them. 

"This is it.." Hunk murmured in fear, shaking in his boots. 

"No, Hunk. We're gunna get through this." He'd hoped he could have fought them during the move from the cave to this spot, but whatever the tribe had been feeding them lately was making his muscles heavy and numb. Had he not been force fed, he'd likely have allowed himself to be starved by now.

In all honesty, he had no idea if they could survive this.

The tribe around them was hungry for blood. They griped endlessly about their plight. How the Galra snooped through their forests. How their god had been helpful to smite the rest of the planet until just before the Galra had come. That this god had been awfully silent since Voltron's being there. They were calling Voltron God Killers.

"What do they think we did?" Keith murmured to Hunk, confused.

"I dunno, man. All we did was build a weather vane." 

A man with long robes took centre stage, spreading his arms wide to the growing crowd. "These two Paladins are the reason our god has been silent for these past few nights! He heeds not our call for protection against this new threat. These paladins have silenced him!" 

The crowd roared in response, brandishing weapons into the air. 

"Our god of storms has left us, and we shall call him back with the blood of his killers!"

Keith's mouth went dry, his stomach dropping. They were truly going to die if he didn't do something soon. From what he could gather, the sudden acid rains the last month or so were because of this group summoning a God of Storms? And now since Voltron left and the Galra came, this god was MIA. It certainly didn't line up in favour of Voltron.

"Why were you summoning a god to hurt the other village? They live on the other side of the planet! What's your goal here?" Keith wasn't really trying to reason with them. He was more angry than anything else, seeing as he and Hunk might end up as pointless sacrifices. 

The head of ceremonies seemed to ignore him, and kept riling up the audience. Men and women in black were sharpening blades nearby. 

What do I do? Keith thought frantically. He had to save Hunk and himself quickly. 

Time was running out. The bladed figures in black were approaching, and the robed leader was heading towards them with a basin stained in old blood. 

"To appease the god of storms." He murmured darkly, taking a fistful of Keith's hair and shoving his head downward. He held the bowl under his neck. A blade came from behind him, ready to slit his throat. Hunk called his name in fear; out of the corner of his eye, he could see the other boy's binds coming loose from his brute strength, but many other bigger villagers were holding him back. 

As the sharp blade pierced Keith's skin, a crack of thunder shattered the sky.

\- - -

Lance's mind ripped in half. He fell to the floor of his room in agony, as a vicious scream tore through his mind. He kicked and cried, his nails digging into his scalp. Yardak stood nearby, stunned by what she was seeing.

"Lotor! Hurry to the main guest room! The patient is--"


	4. A Shattered Heart, an Empty Hope

Waking Lions 4

Lotor arrived to a room that was freezing cold, storming, with a screaming young man in the centre of it looking as if his very core were being ripped apart. The power that Lance was radiating was electric in his veins. This was clearly the work of that odd entity in the boy's brain; yet it seemed Lance had no control of it.

"Send for Haggar!" Lotor commanded his entourage. He knew he could not stop anything like this without outright killing Lance. 

He staggered towards him against wind and rain, which inexplicably wailed around him inside the room. "Lance!"

Lance could only barely hear Lotor's voice. His head hurt more than he'd ever felt before. Something had happened. Something bad. He felt his whole body and being break apart with this feeling. Whatever power was living in his blood fuelled this bad feeling and caused this horrid burning inside his soul. He'd only now noticed the rain and storm inside his room, soaking him to the bone. Lotor's hand gripped his shoulder, bringing his mind away from the pain and focusing on the prince before him.

"I-I dunno what's happening!" He trembled, staring up at Lotor with large, terrified blue eyes that glowed with an unnatural vibrance. "I just had the feeling of something really bad happening and I just--"

"It's fine Lance." Lotor replied sharply, gripping both shoulders now in hopes of stabilizing him. "We clearly underestimated whatever it is that has its hold on you. Stay calm."

Stay calm.. It was such a silly thing to say in this situation. Yet Lance did feel calmer. Lotor wasn't yelling at him. In fact, he looked worried for him. Concerned. Lance knew it was because he was likely destroying his ship, yet.. he wanted to believe otherwise. Maybe he cared for him. Someone had to, right?

Haggar loomed in from the doorway, her hands crackling with dark power. The storm was already tapering off. Lotor's presence and his words had already done half the job for her. "We need to seal that power." She told them both as she hovered close by. "It could be a problem." Her hazy gaze shifted to the windows that oversaw outer space. True, if his powers did get much worse, he could possibly break those windows, and take out the whole ship as well as himself.

Lance closed his eyes as he felt her hands brush against his temples. It burned. It felt horrible, and the entity within him seemed to shriek and scream at her interference. The storms picked up, and lightning cracked around Lance in sharp bursts. He felt his throat bleed dry from the screams that tore out in pain. After what felt like too long, the storm abated, and Lance collapsed onto his side.

He lay there, coughing and panting in pain and exhaustion. Lotor remained close, keeping a comforting hand on his back. "What did you do, witch?" He asked calmly with a underlying layer of darkness.

"I sealed off the link between the entity and the paladin. It won't hold forever. I'll break the seal when we find a way to remove the being, or until we can be sure the paladin won't use this power against us."

She swept out of the room, not giving Lance nor Lotor a chance to ask for more information. Lance regained some of his own strength and composure, sitting up with some help from the prince. "What the Hell was that?" Lance rasped, wiping water from his face. The room was trashed, but he didn't want to deal with that yet. 

"I'm not sure. We'll have to run tests to figure that out. You weren't born with latent magical abilities, I assume?"

"No!" Lance coughed again, agitated and worn from his supernatural tantrum. "I've never been special my whole..." No.. that would give himself away. He swallowed, feeling the burn of shame flush his face. "I've never had powers. All I've had was my connection to the Blue Lion. Was it her?"

Lotor shook his head. "No, I doubt that much." He helped Lance to his feet, and ordered the guards to see them out. "For now, this room is unusable. We'll take you to my quarters."

Lance looked up in alarm. "Uh... not that I wanna screw myself over, but wouldn't you rather put me in a cell?"

Lotor stared down at lance a moment, and simply replied; "No. I wouldn't."

"Oh." That was that then. Lotor still wasn't going to fully treat him like a prisoner, even after that display of.. whatever it was. Still, to share a room with the prince of the enemy empire? What romantic fiction story had he fallen into? "Um.. where are you supposed to sleep if I'm.."

"I'll be sharing the room with you. It'll be easier to keep an eye on you."

Again, Lance felt keeping him under guard with actual guards was the better choice. He still didn't understand why he was being treated so nicely. This guy had taken out Voltron. So why? Why the special treatment? By all accounts, it would be better if Lotor took him out of the picture, right? Leave Voltron without a leg..

He was too bothered to ponder it further. By the time they arrived at the new room, Lance was ready to collapse. 

"Don't get me wrong, Lance. It won't take long to fix up your room. I'd just rather keep an eye on you is all." He led Lance through the room and to another door. "Inside is my private bathroom. Have a hot shower and dry yourself off. Do take care not to summon another hurricane."

He was lightly shoved inside, and the door closed.

Lance felt the enormity of the last several minutes hit him like a sack of bricks. His throat closed up in pain, his eyes welled with tears too stubborn to fall. How was he to cope with all this? He gasped for breath, ripping off sopping wet clothes and tossing them to the floor. Everything was falling apart. He didn't even know what he was anymore. He'd not only lost his place of significance within Voltron, not only was left abandoned, not only captured and used as some test subject.. he also had to cope with the fact whatever had latched onto his brain might cause such havoc?

Lance had always wanted to be extraordinary, to be significant and powerful. But not like this. Not hijacked by some unknown thing. Not pulled from his home, never to see his family. Not this.

Once under the shelter of a noisy shower he finally let himself cry. He covered his mouth with his hand, bracing himself on the shower wall. What hurt worse was he had no control over his own fate anymore. No control at all. He was caught in a riptide. Whatever horrible feeling he'd had before that thing burst out of his pores had passed, but was replaced with this horrid omen that loomed close to his back. There was too much on his mind. Too much hurt, pain. Too many questions that no one would or could answer.   
Where was his team? Were they okay? Did they care he was gone? Maybe they'd abandoned him up here after all.   
What was this entity? Was it from that planet? The ocean that had called him from the ship? What did it want from him?  
What did Lotor want from him? Or Haggar? 

He felt himself hyperventilating. He slid down into a corner of the shower stall, curled into a ball as the hot, steaming water fogged up the glass. At least in here, he had some privacy to let out his feelings; a cozy sort of prison of his own making. He felt horridly alone in this place, yet being alone was exactly what he wanted at that moment. Alone with his tears, his shame, his fear.

It was an age before he felt ready to face anyone again. He turned off the water, found a large towel and wrapped himself up snugly. It occurred to him he no longer had clothing to cover up with, as his wet clothes sat uselessly on the floor. With great embarrassment, he stepped cautiously out into the room, wrapped head to foot in the overlarge towel.

No one was there. Just Lotor's room, a bed that looked recently prepped for sleep, and neatly folded garments at the foot of it. Lance crept toward them, leaving dripping water and wet footprints in his wake. The garments were a soft, silky pyjama set, complete with a cozy robe. A note lay on top;

"I'll be working through the night. You've had a rough day, so I'll be leaving you with some well deserved privacy. Get some rest. -Lotor"

Lance was touched. Was Lotor being thoughtful? Allowing Lance some privacy? As if he hadn't been left all by himself this entire time... but perhaps he'd interpreted Lance's misgivings about being in Lotor's chambers as discomfort. Maybe he'd seen Lance was ready to break, and was allowing him space and time to deal with it.   
Lance got dressed right away, basking in ease at the feel of the expensive fabric. He wormed under the comfortable bedding, sinking into a plush mattress. He'd just had one of the worst experiences of his life; yet now that he was all cried out, snug in bed and warm from his shower, he felt himself start to relax. 

Maybe being here wasn't really so bad. It was lonely, sure, and he wasn't given any more attention than he did in the castle. He was just their experiment. But at least when things went wrong, he felt taken care of. His team used to be like that. He wasn't sure when that stopped. At some point after the battle with Zarkon, everyone just drifted..

He sighed, rolling over and snuggling into the plush softness of the pillow. He tried not to think about the fact this was not his bed; that it was in fact Lotor's. That just made him feel uncomfortable things. What he wanted more than anything was to pretend he was home.. that maybe.. if he closed his eyes and woke up to this all being a dream. That.. just maybe, he'd see his mother again, warm in her arms, a kiss to his head.

Family. Love.

He fell asleep, a wash of sadness dulling his colours.

\- - -

Keith didn't understand what had just happened. The knife had dug into his skin, ready to end his life with one slash sideways. As soon as that blood had touched the knife, a blast of energy sent the two men flying away from him. An electric force crackled around him, dissipating almost as quickly as it had come. 

The head of ceremony sat shocked on the ground, shakily raising his pointed finger at Keith. "What are you? Have you made a pact with the gods as well?"

"...Huh?" Keith felt stupid. All of this bogus nonsense couldn't be real, right? 

"The storm god is angry." Another villager whispered.

"Is it because we attacked the paladin..?"

"The gods are angry..."

Everyone around them seemed to grow into a panic. Keith looked to Hunk, who had indeed broke from his restraints, and now was shoving away from the guards around him. "Buddy!" He called to Keith, flying over and undoing his bindings for him. "I dunno what just happened but it had bad mojo all over it."

"Yeah.. what happened?" Keith was free now, rubbing his wrists as he stared up at Hunk.

"I dunno! They tried to slit your throat, and then it was like lightning crashed from space!"

Keith narrowed his eyes. "Lightning doesn't--"

"I know I know, shut up Keith." Hunk interrupted, taking Keith's arm and herding him from the clearing of blood and death. "C'mon. Let's go before they snap out of it."

Indeed, the village tribe didn't seem to know what to do with the paladins, fearing their god's wrath yet wanting answers. Keith and Hunk slipped into the forest and booked it fast. 

"I felt something." Keith panted as he ran alongside Hunk, "Almost like a vision or a feeling. When that lightning hit or whatever. I thought I heard..."

"Huh? Felt? Heard something? Like what?"

"I just.." Keith dodged branches and jumped over tree roots, trying to understand what he'd experienced, "I thought I heard Lance scream."

\- - -

They ran for miles, until both Hunk and Keith could run no further. Taking shelter in a rather dense part of the forest, they let themselves sit down and rest. After minutes passed where they could do little but catch their breath, the pair finally felt it was safe to try and talk.

"So.. you heard Lance?" Hunk asked tentatively, pulling a small handkerchief from a leg compartment and placing it on the small cut on Keith's neck. "Are you sure? Cause I think we both are just feelin' a little worried and guilty about him, yanno?" 

Keith looked doubtful, lifting his neck enough to give Hunk room to tend to his small wound. Guiltily, he'd thought very little about their lost comrade. He didn't let Hunk know this, and simply tried to elaborate. "No, I know I heard him. Actually, it felt like I was him for a split second.. I dunno where he is, or what's going on.. but it was like we were connected."

Hunk stared thoughtfully at Keith. "Do you think Lance has some connection to this Storm God thing?" After all, the attempted sacrifice was all in the name of that so called god that produced acid rain. "I mean.. we did abandon him on this weird planet for like two days.. Jeez, I still can't forgive myself for that." His gaze fell to the earthy forest floor, picking at fallen leaves and mulch dirt. "I thought we were best friends, but maybe I've been getting all distracted cause of the Galra, the war.. all this cool technology on the castle? But the more I think about it.. the more I can't seem to picture Lance in any of my recent memories. I wonder if we've all just grown apart cause of all this."

Keith felt uncomfortable. He wasn't very good with this deep thinking, nor the contemplation of regret Hunk seemed to be having. Keith never really felt like part of the family anyway. "I'm sure it's nothing, Hunk. Lance is Lance.. He makes his own fun."

Hunk looked up at Keith, perplexed. "No.. not really? I don't think he does.. He has a huge family back in Cuba. And at school he was always trying to be the centre of attention. The more I think about it? The more I realize he really hates being alone. I think we really messed up, Keith."

The Red Paladin chewed on this information for a bit. Lance was always so aggressive and competitive, that any attempt on his part to ignore the guy always made things worse. Had Lance just been trying to be seen? Was his desperate attempts at irritating confrontation just his way of getting the attention he so sorely needed? Keith needed to rethink the way he perceived Lance. 

"I dunno, Hunk.. he always tries to get on my nerves, and puts me down. It's hard to get close to a guy like that."

Hunk smiled apologetically, "Yeah.. I think he's just intimidated by you, man. Don't take it personally."

Intimidated? By him? Keith sighed heavily, and leaned against a tree, staring up at the glittering canopy above. "I wonder if he's okay. I couldn't see Blue anywhere when I was looking for the other lions."

"Wait, really?" Hunk sat up straighter, "Not at all? Oh no, he isn't still floating in space, is he? Did he get captured?" Hunk was in full panic mode, and Keith felt badly for making the guy worry.

"I dunno, Hunk. I just couldn't find Blue, that's all." But now he was worried too. He'd been so focused on Shiro, he'd completely neglected someone who was clearly in a lot of danger. Then again, they all were. "The castle has been taken over from what I could tell. I actually found a drone that Pidge sent-"

"Pidge is okay?" Hunk brightened up, leaning forward to hear more.

"Yeah." Keith fished through his suit to find the devices she'd made for him. "I'm supposed to put these around the planet near the other lions, that way she can expand her range for a proper scan."

"Beacons. Yeah. Good job, Pidge." Hunk smiled, taking a few of them and looking them over. "I guess this is what you were doing before you got captured?"

Keith nodded. "We should do this together. Back each other up. We might find the others on the way." He offered a smile, holding out his hand to Hunk. The large paladin smiled back, broad and hopeful. He clasped his hand tightly. "Let's do this."

\- - -

"I know Keith received the beacons, but at some point he stopped pinging back communications. Something happened, but I don't know what." Pidge sat in her chair, looking over whatever data was still coming through. "I'm getting readings of there being a lot of heat signatures near him. He either found allies, or he's been captured."

Allura leaned against the console, watching as Pidge did her work. She flicked through a screen of her own as she tried to aid Pidge in her work. "It would have been obvious if it were the Galra. But I don't detect any of their ships or technology in these readings. He seems to be quite far from most Galra activity that we know of so far."

Pidge nodded in agreement, straining her eyes as she tirelessly tried to keep her focus split between finding Keith and keeping tabs on the castle and other lions. 

"Pidge? I wasn't able to connect with Blue when I was looking for the green lion. I felt to some capacity the other signatures of Black, Yellow and Red, and yet...?"

"I've had no luck on that." Pidge frowned, leaning back in her chair and rubbing at her eyes. "It's probably still in space, or otherwise on the opposite side of the planet. Keith won't be able to get that far on foot to check. I'd need to hack into a physical console on one of the Galran ships. That way I could implant my own device inside it and use it to intercept all the incoming data. That would give me a lot more range on what information I get. Everything I have right now is just the loose waves of data pinging around inside the immediate area."

Allura frowned, "This is difficult. If only we were all together. We could form Voltron and take out this awful mess."

"We couldn't even form Voltron ever since Shiro stabilized. Something within the bond is so off kilter that the process can't even begin to align."

The princess stood up straighter in alarm. "The bond itself? Is that what's wrong?"

Pidge gave a nod, finally taking her eyes off her work. "I went over all the specifics. The lions were functioning fine after the battle with Zarkon. Shiro was the outlier, since his own physical being was corrupted and out of sync with reality. So we chocked it up to that.. but even when he seemed on the mend, we still couldn't do it. So I thought back to when we first became a team."

Allura nodded, "The bonding exercises. Of course.. most of you were perfect strangers, so it made sense you'd have a hard time opening up to each other. Are you saying that bond has been broken?"

Pidge leaned her arms on her knees, brows knit in concern. "Broken, maybe. This sort of thing isn't really my forte. I can understand computers. People not so much.. but even I think we've grown apart as a team. Even as a family. Barely friends.." She trailed off, thinking of how they'd all completely forgotten the loudest member of the team on a planet for two days.   
"We left him, Allura." She looked up with large hazel eyes, guilt and hurt shining within them, "We forgot Lance on an alien planet. For two whole days. How did we let that happen? When did we stop caring about each other?" Pidge knew she was one of the worse offenders of this. She preferred keeping to her own agenda. Keith had once called her out on such selfishness before.

Allura sighed, sinking to the floor and sitting down, hands in her lap. "To be brutally honest.. I did notice the difference. I even thought at the time it was a lovely reprieve that Lance had been so quiet." To her credit, Pidge thought, it probably was a relief not dealing with the occasional desperate attempt at flirting. Then again, Lance had been getting better about leaving the poor woman alone.

"I feel bad, too." Pidge admitted. "I yell at him a lot. And ignore everything he says or tries to say. I think.. we all tend to push him on the back burner too often. He tries so hard to contribute, but..."

It was clear. Shiro was not likely the cause of the rift between them all.

A sudden beeping alarmed them both of their reverie. Pidge gasped as she brought up feed from one of her screens. "Look at this! It happened near where Keith is."

It was mostly data, with heat signatures in a small graphic. There had been an explosion of heat followed by a sudden wash of cold. Everything went normal after that, but the readings themselves were off the wall.

"I have no idea what to make of this data. If only I had visual feed." Pidge typed rapidly, trying to decipher the information into something that made sense. "It's like.. a huge blast of energy? There must be something nearby that saw it." She flew through screens, looking for some sort of video feed she could latch onto. Finally, after looking through grainy security footage outposts near the lions, she found one trained had caught the anomaly.

In the background of one static video, the sky lit up, and a sudden bolt of energy came down from space. It was like lightning, fast and sudden, jagged and electric. It was gone in a split second.

"What.. was that?"

\- - -

Lance woke up to find a witch staring at him from across the room. Shrieking in shock he sat up, backing himself up against the headboard. "What the Hell! Have you just been watching me sleep?"

Haggar sneered from the doorway, "I'm here to collect you for testing. Come now or be dragged by your pathetic head of hair."

Lance frowned, moping as he ran his fingers through the short strands of hair. He thought it looked really cool. What did a space witch know anyway? Getting out of bed, the lean earthling walked cautiously toward Haggar. "Can I at least get dressed first? I'm still in my PJs and I haven't brushed my teeth!"

The witch gave Lance a withering grimace, turning away and walking down the hall. Lance was smart enough to follow without further comment. 

He was led a great distance from Lotor's room. He wondered endlessly if maybe he should have waited to see if Lotor knew Haggar was taking him. Maybe she was doing this against orders. Maybe she was going to perform awful experiments on him.

Lance gave himself pause. Since when did he trust in Lotor so much? When did he start getting comfortable in this lifestyle he was in?

They arrived at a lab. It was dark and gloomy, none of the stark white the castle usually had. The walls were lined with instruments of science and medical use, artifacts of unknown origin. There was rows of exam tables, restraints, tubes that could hold a whole body. It gave Lance the creeps. So far, Haggar nor anyone was forcing him anywhere. He'd not been tied down. He'd not been led in chains.

"Sit here, Paladin." Haggar gestured to a large chair, fitted with restraints. Lance scrunched his nose, his body turning away from the sight of it. "Uh... you're not gunna tie me to that thing are you?"

"Don't struggle and I won't have to."

Lance gulped, but inched his way to the chair. After a little too much hesitation on his part, Haggar shoved him into it, then walked away to prepare what she needed. Lance sat there, keeping his arms crossed so no one could strap them down. He tapped his foot nervously, looked around at all of the terrifying things that surrounded him. "So um.. what sort of tests are we doing?"

"I would think it would be obvious." She sneered, moving to stand in front of him. "That power you unleashed is tied to a great and powerful being that once dwelled in the ocean of that planet you visited. It has inexplicably chosen you as it's host."

Lance loosed his grip on his arms, staring up into Haggar's fathomless white eyes. "A.. like.. like a god?"

The witch didn't seem to care for this terminology, but moved on regardless. "There are many beings just like it in the universe. I've been searching for one in particular, very similar to what now resides within you. As such, I'd like to research it. The benefit my research will give you is preventing another such unexpected outburst. I can teach you to take control of this power."

Lance didn't know what to think. Power was tempting, and it would be right there for the taking. It would mean he had something over his teammates. He'd be even more powerful than Allura, too. 

"What's the catch?"

Haggar leaned down, placing her long, gnarled fingers on the arm rests of Lance's chair. "Unquestionable loyalty to Lotor."

Lance gulped. "Um.. unquestionable?"

"I'd much rather pry this power from your brain, leaving you weak and useless. I won't help you until I can be sure you won't use this power against us."

It made sense. But to pledge himself to the prince of an empire was not something to be taken lightly. "I can't just turn my back on my team." Lance replied firmly. Haggar smiled sharply, "Is that so? It seems like they're very keen to leave you behind though."

So she knew as well. Did everyone on this ship know that Lance was previously abandoned? "That.. it was an accident. They're not like that."

"But no one has come for you now, either." Haggar let her fingers slide away from the arm rests. She moved behind him, slowly circling his chair. "The great and powerful Voltron, taken down by a measly Ion canon? The lot of you have overcome greater hurtles than this. So what is keeping them? Are you truly so insubstantial? Tell me, what is it you do that Voltron cannot do without?"

Lance didn't want to answer these questions. Why was Haggar doing this to him? "What do you want from me?" He asked irritably, his limbs curling into himself as he tried to escape reality.

"Loyalty. I believe I made that clear. I want to be sure your ties to that pathetic ragtag group are cut away before I attempt to help you with this power."

"I can't! I can't turn my back on Voltron." Lance felt stronger for saying this, even if he knew it would doom him. "I want to save the universe, not destroy it!" In all honesty he just wanted to go home.. but there was no way he'd be able to sleep well knowing there was a war being fought that he could have helped with.

"Very well. Let's just take this being out from you then."

Haggar was before him once more, only this time her patience was through. She grasped his head in both hands, gripping tightly as dark energy crackled between her fingers. But as soon as he felt her try to separate him and the being, a flash of energy sent her tumbling backwards. Lance gasped, the energy in his head pulsating and giving him the biggest headache he'd ever had. Gripping his own head, he watched as Haggar staggered to her feet.

"No luck, huh?" Lance asked with a cheeky grin. "Looks like you can't take this thing from me by force." Which meant she'd have to switch tactics, and stop this whole turning on his friends business.

"Don't get ahead of yourself." Haggar replied calmly. "I'd simply need to perform a ceremony with my new druids. It would be a lot more painful for you than doing it myself, and likely would result in your death." She approached again, but kept a fair distance from Lance.

"So.. you won't betray Voltron, yet you still have provided me with no proof as to how useful you truly are to them."

Lance glared, willing himself to speak evenly. "Th-they need me. I pilot the Blue Lion."

"When is the last time your team formed Voltron."

Lance began to sweat, his heart trembling within his chest. "Bu-"

"Do you truly think only you could pilot that pathetic lion?"

A wall opened up, revealing a large screen. The Blue Lion's barrier was coming down, and the person who stood before it was none other than... himself? How? Lance yelped, standing up from the chair he'd been sitting in. There was no way! It had to be a trick.

"Did you honestly think you were chosen? Special?" Haggar sneered, her robed arm coming up to point to the large screen. "Look how easily I replace you! It took no more than a day to create an entirely new Lance McClain. So tell me again how valuable you are to Voltron?"

A clone. She'd cloned him; and now he was watching that very clone, dressed in his old wet clothes, climb up into the lion. "That clone will go down to the planet, reunite with your friends, and fly off into the galaxy to save the universe without you."

Lance's heart fell, as he slumped back into the chair. He felt himself go cold and numb. Blue left him. Blue couldn't tell the difference between him and that fake. He was replaced. Quickly and easily. He felt like he had no one left in the universe that he could trust.

Haggar once again pressed her hands to his temples. Lance's lackluster blue eyes lifted to stare into the unfathomable abyss of Haggar's leering gaze. The witch grinned. "Let's try this again, shall we? To whom are you loyal?"

\- - -

"She did what?" Lotor stood from his seat, staring as Ezor gave her report. 

"Like I said. She made a clone of your little pet, and got the clone to pilot the Blue Lion."

Lotor sat again, his head swimming. "What could she possibly be thinking? Sending the Paladins a lion.. does she mean to make the clone her spy?" Ezor shrugged at this hypothesis. She was tasked with spying, not thinking.   
He was certain Haggar was loyal to the crown, but her methods seemed risky. He also wasn't entirely confident that she'd see eye to eye when it came to how Lotor wanted to steer the empire. 

"Toying around with Voltron like this.. it goes against what she said to me when she came here. She'd wanted to eliminate them quickly. Does Lance know about this?" It quickly dawned on him that the boy had been scheduled for a test that morning.

Ezor nodded. "She showed him the clone taking the Blue Lion. He seemed pretty bummed."

Lotor felt ill. Sure, he'd wanted to pull Lance's loyalties more toward himself, and he had enlisted Haggar's help for just that. Yet it left a bad taste in his mouth. Well.. he'd done worse in his life. It was a means to an end. He'd have to be careful about picking up the pieces of Lance that Haggar had left for him. "I'll try and make sense of this later. Continue your work, Ezor. Keep me informed."

Ezor nodded, and with a wink, vanished. 

The prince rose from his seat, walking toward the massive window overlooking the planet. He'd spent most of his life cast out of the family, kept from his duties. He wanted this position more than anything, but it was proving the biggest challenge of his life thus far. Keeping tabs on Haggar while trying to use her for her abilities, and keeping the status quo steady while trying to reform it at the same time. It was all terribly tricky.

It was time to check in on his ground troops. He might have to visit them personally at some point. Whatever Haggar's plan, Lotor did not want Voltron to reunite and attack them. Voltron was always more powerful when the team was solid. 

But first, he needed to check in on Lance, and see just how bad the damage was.


	5. Follow the Thread

Waking Lions 5

Lance had never felt more alone in his whole life. At least on the castle he could trick himself into thinking he was one of them. No matter how often he was passed over by Shiro in favour of Keith, how often he was ignored by Hunk in favour of Pidge, how often the Princess scowled at him in disgust, Coran's occasional interest in him as a personal assistant or errand boy, rather than that one meaningful heart to heart they'd had way back when this had all started. His only solace, then, had been in Blue's undying loyalty and love.

Now? Blue was gone. Taken by a cheap facsimile of himself. Just how had Haggar done it? How good was the clone? How hard would it be to tell the difference? Was he really so simply of a creature to be cloned within days of being captured? It had taken off with his clothes, his identity, his lion. Everything Lance McClain was, taken so easily.

What am I?

He'd been fooling himself all this time. He wasn't worthy of anything. All that showboating had been exactly what he'd feared; just a pathetic attempt at making everyone else believe in him when he couldn't even believe in himself. The truth hurt. Badly.

Haggar smiled, a little softer than before, pulling her hands away. "That's enough for today. My seal on your powers is holding well enough. We can test its potential when you're feeling better."

Lance was escorted by the druids out of the lab, still clad in his silk pjs, hair a mess of bedhead. But he figured he looked how he felt. Gone was the meticulous way he'd keep his hair, his skin. Even if he could go back to his silly little self care routine, would he even care to? What was the point anymore? White noise seemed to deafen the air around him as he marched slowly onward. Only when he was stopped by the halting of the druid's pace did he look up.   
Lotor was there, speaking to the lead druid, and he kept glancing at Lance with something akin to worry. After dismissing the druids, Lotor faced Lance head on. 

"Are you all right? You barely look dressed."

"Haggar gave away my clothes.." Lance murmured numbly, looking past Lotor into a sort of middle-verse. He hid inside that numbness, not wanting to confront or accept all that had transpired. 

Lotor's eyes grew narrow, his voice commanding and confident. "Then I shall get you new clothes. Come, Lance. Let's get you somewhere else." He led Lance away, a careful hand placed on his back. Lance didn't care to think about how the prince was treating him as something fragile, like a delicate flower petal that would wilt with too much motion. He still didn't understand if he was a prisoner or not. If he asked to go home.. would Lotor let him? No, of course not. He was possessed by an Ocean God of Storms now, and a former pilot of a Lion of Voltron. He'd never be allowed to leave.

Lance was led back to Lotor's room, as his own was still in the process of being fixed for lightning and water damage. He still couldn't believe that had not been a dream. That he of all people had held real power. To wield the power of a storm? No.. he'd not wielded that power. It had burst forth from him and wouldn't stop, making his throat bleed from screaming in pain. He still didn't understand why it had happened; why had the entity or god in his brain suddenly had such a tantrum. He faintly remembered having a flash of some image.. looking up at some stranger, and feeling a blade press against his throat. 

He was made to sit on a comfy chair, one made for someone twice his height. His feet dangled from the floor, so he chose to bring up his knees and press his toes against the edge of the cushion instead. The room was quiet, big, and dark. Purple and black painted every feature. A dark world that he'd been associating with danger and tyranny, but now just seemed to reflect is inner state of being.   
Most ships and technology in space seemed to lack personality and homeyness. They were empty, to the point. Made for one purpose, and reflected as much. Lance himself felt scoured of all his facades, stripped down to his bare basics. He barely felt human.

Lotor sat opposite of him, only a few feet apart. "Tell me, Lance. What did Haggar do? What did she say?"

Lance didn't even look at him. Lotor was big, regal and powerful. Lance felt like a flea next to him. Lotor was a prince. Lance was nothing.

"Nothing.." He repeated to himself.

"I very much doubt nothing happened.. I heard only the gist of it from an informant." Lotor looked away, his fingers pressing against his lips as he thought. How could he get Lance to open up to him? The boy was closing himself off.

Lance continued to allow himself to steep in the numb white noise of his foggy mind. He didn't dare try to move from that feeling. He knew all his problems were just outside the fog, ready to strike him in the heart.

"How about this.." Lotor started again, leaning forward earnestly, "When I first met you, you were muttering to yourself. I recall you saying something negative about Voltron. In the time you've spent here, not once have you tried to escape or fight. Tell me.. do you not get along with your team mates?"

"I wasn't running away." Lance spoke up reflexively, "That's not why I was down there."

"I know."Lotor replied solemnly. "You'd been forgotten. Now, if you were just one crew member out of hundreds like the Galran war cruisers, I can imagine this happening easily. But as far as I know, that castle houses only seven. You were on that planet, alone, for two entire quintants. Just how close are you to your team mates?"

Lance didn't want to answer for many reasons. He feared speaking of Voltron's vulnerabilities to the enemy. He feared facing the truth of his relationship with the team. Yet as hurt as he was, he still didn't wish to betray them. After all, even if Haggar had sent a clone, there was no telling if Voltron would truly believe it was the real deal, right? But even that hope didn't bring him joy. That a mere clone could convince Blue to leave him had taken more from him than he'd been able to bear.

An attendant politely knocked on the door before entering, bringing Lotor a bundle of something. The attendant was excused, and then left quietly. "I've ordered up a few things to keep you comfortable. Surely you don't want to sit around in pyjamas all day." The prince seemed to have let Lance's silence slide for now, dropping the subject temporarily. He set the bundle on a small table next to Lance.  
Curious despite his lethargy, Lance pulled it towards himself, and slowly pulled away the wrappings. A bundled set of bottles with self care items like soap, hair products, toothpaste, a toothbrush, and and even a comb sat neatly atop a small folded set of clothes. They were different from what Lance usually wore. A flight suit in blues and greys, coupled with sneaker-like boots and a canvas jacket that was very similar to his old one. 

"I know I've not been the best of hosts, but I like to believe my actions were merited given the discourse between Voltron and the Galra." Lance looked up, wincing at the pity that hid in Lotor's gaze. Worse than being a prisoner was being pampered by his captor due to pity. Truly, he felt quite pathetic.  
"That being said, while I still cannot simply let you go to chase after Voltron and your clone.. I will do my best to make you feel at home here. I want you to trust me, Lance."

"Why?" Lance asked, his voice thick with bitter sadness. He hated that the emotions he was trying to bury under a numb buzzing were being dug up by this perfect prince.

"Why?" Lotor repeated, seemingly perplexed. "To be blunt? I felt guilty." He pulled the new green jacket from Lance's lap, examining the stitch work. "Everything was taken from you, and I did not exactly help matters. Be that as it may, I still have no intention of allowing Voltron to reunite."

"What's so wrong with wanting to give people their freedom?" Lance asked with much more fervour. It was easy to feel compassion for others, distancing himself from his own problems. It made him feel right with himself again. "Aren't you just a coward for not standing up to the rest of the Galra?"

Lotor did not care for that statement, casting a seething glare in Lance's direction. "Don't dare assume I never stood up for my own ideals, or for the freedom of others. I tried, and was cast out for hundreds of years."

"So what?" Lance scoffed, "All that happened to you was you got kicked out of the family. People have lost their lives! Their families.." His voice cracked at his last statement, thinking of his own family, too far away to even fathom seeing them again. "You could have formed your own resistance. You could have fought. I'm sure hundreds of people would have followed you. You're a prince!"

Lotor sat silent, ruminating on Lance's point. He wasn't wrong, of course. Yet Lotor was not willing to sacrifice this opportunity, his right, as heir to the empire. "I feel I can do much good from my position." Lotor pressed after a moment, "War is not won chasing after battles. We must plan ahead, think several steps ahead of our enemies and our allies. The moment I step out of line as leader of the Galran Empire is the moment it will turn against me. Destroy me. All the power I wield would be nothing. You speak of pretty ideals, Lance McClain. You have not lived through this war as I have."

Lance was young, this he knew. Not just from his looks, but his world views. It was clear the little human knew nothing of strife, nor the delicate nature of ruling an empire, or fighting against the status quo. Lance was naiive. Lotor was not. And the prince had no intention of giving up on his plan to use Lance against Voltron. As idealogical an idea as Intergalatic Peace was, it wasn't in his best interest. It was too complicated. Too many variables. Voltron was a volatile means of success.

Still, he needed to appease Lance's childish notions as much as he could afford.

"I will be leaving the ship for a few days." Lotor announced, finished with explaining himself. "You'll be in Yardak's hands, as well as Haggar's. Is there anything I could retrieve for you from the ship?"

Lance looked up, a barely concealed terror in his eyes. He didn't want to be left with the witch.

"Is something the matter?" Lotor asked, knowing full well Lance was terrified of Haggar and what she could do. 

The former Blue Paladin held back the urge to plead to go with him, to beg for him to stay. Haggar had too much power over him. Magically, yes, but worse was her ability to rip open his insecurities and hurt him. Lotor he knew was able to do this too, but he was much more gentlemanly about it.  
Besides, he'd lost so much already. He wondered if he could keep his dignity and pride just a little longer, despite them being reduced to fraying threads. 

"No." He said with a stubborn edge. "Go ahead. Lemme know all about how you enslave an innocent world and destroy the Universe's only hope."

Lotor frowned with disappointment. "Don't be so bitter, Lance. After all, it's not as if they ever cared for you."

\- - -

Lotor was wrong.

He was wrong. He was wrong.

Lance paced the princely suite over and over, glaring occasionally at the clothing that had been brought for him. Lance knew things between himself and the other paladins had been stale lately, but it wasn't true what Lotor said; They had cared for him. Once upon a time, he was sure. Hunk had braved a dangerous occupied planet to get a crystal to save his life. Shiro had carried him and protected him against Sendak and the other Galra during the invasion of the castle. Pidge and him spent hours playing that Earth game together. Coran had sought him out that night after they'd saved the Arusians, barely knowing him yet, just because Lance looked sad. 

He knew they'd cared for him once. That wasn't the problem. The problem was that they didn't seem to care lately.

Lance finally took the offered bath products into the shower with him. After cleaning himself up, brushing his teeth, combing his hair, he finally dressed in the clothes he'd been gifted. It looked nice, to be honest. He was actually impressed. He'd not been dressed like a prisoner. Not even in the colours of Lotor's personal generals or a Galran soldier. No, he looked.. different. His own colours. His own style.

Finally he flopped onto a couch, staring up at the ceiling with his foot draped over one of the arm rests. Haggar and Lotor, while wildly different, obviously wanted something from him. To turn him against Voltron. Probably because he'd shown he was gifted with outstanding powers.   
Still, the things they'd said, and his own mind, was supplying him with reason to believe in their words. His own crew did seem disinterested in him. Their home away from home had quickly become his prison. Ignored, not taken seriously, passed over. No matter what he did or tried.

It was almost enough to tempt him away...

As Lance grouched unhappily, a sudden realization hit him. He should have gone with Lotor. Not for himself to escape Haggar, but to find a way to save his friends on the surface. He cursed himself for his folly, saved from a complete guilt trip by the assurance that Lotor likely never intended for him to get such a chance anyway.

Most of his day was spent pacing. His cold had subsided, the fever broken. He hadn't much energy to spare, yet he couldn't feel at ease just waiting anymore. He needed to do something. Especially if it was risky.

Still, try as he might, the door would not open. There were no vents to sneak into either. If only he was smart enough! Why was he so useless--

A sound like the roaring of a storm sparked in his mind. He stopped his pacing. Again, he felt it on the edges of his mind; ocean waves, the lure of the water, sinking, drowning. A call for help? Was it Blue or that Thing in his mind? It rattled his nerves and put lightning on the tips of his fingers. He felt the swell of the ocean putting pressure on his brain. Grasping his head in his hands, Lance knelt on the floor in agony. That thing.. it was trying to break free again.

Hadn't Haggar put some kind of bind on it? Maybe that was the pain he was feeling, as pressure built more inside his brain. He didn't know what to do. How was he supposed to call for help? This thing was going to kill him! He was tired of suffering. Tired of fighting alone. Tired of being alone, and having all of these horrible things happen to him, with no way to win.

"...La..nce."

"No no no get out of my head! Go away! Go away!"

"LANCE!"

Lance's eyes snapped open. He was in space. No more ship, no more stately bedroom. Just stars and endless nothingness. The pain was there, but the pressure was holding off. There, just beyond his reach, stood...

"...Shiro?"

\- - - 

Shiro had not felt time pass. The journey had been one that was completely outside of himself, outside his mortal form. Just like strengthening the bond with himself and the Black Lion, he'd traversed into something beyond the physical. Meditating, and following large energies, he tried to find whatever Black was telling him to do. He'd travelled to the bottom of the ocean of the Roman style planet. There, had been a great energy he could not get close to. Strong and ancient, yet so familiar. Much like the power of the lions, it was magic that science could not explain.

That energy was linked to someone in space. Following that energy, he found Lance. He was in great pain, and Shiro called out to him. Over and over, until finally, through their bonds, he brought him here with him.

"Lance." Shiro smiled, "It's so good to see you safe."

"Safe?" Lance scoffed, gesturing to the universe in general. "I have a weird energy demon in my brain, Voltron is gone because of me, and I'm trapped on a ship with the wicked witch of the universe! Oh, and also Prince Loreal, to top it off."

Shiro smiled softly, his head tilting to the side. "It wasn't your fault Lance. We're a team. We win together, and we go down together... I think you ought to know, but Keith and Hunk almost got sacrificed to a God of Storms."

Lance reigned himself in, instantly worrying over the fate of Hunk, and even Keith. "Are.. are they okay?"

"Lance, you felt it, didn't you?"

He remembered then, the sensation of a knife at his throat, and a sudden fear that had ripped through his mind. "I.. yeah. But why?"

"Because that ancient God they were almost sacrificed to? That's the being inside you right now. It exists, and you are linked to it." Lance could hardly believe it. How was it possible an ancient deity existed inside his brain?

"But why?" His brow furrowed, still fatigued by the pain. "Why me? Is that what called me out on that planet?"

"I think so, Lance." Shiro looked out at the endless ocean of space around them, their depths reflected in his dark gaze. "It's energy.. much like the Lions of Voltron, they're sentient and powerful. It's made of mostly quintessence. As for why it called to you, that may be because of your connection to Blue. After all, the Blue Lion is linked to bodies of water."

Lance knew the ocean had called to him, but he'd thought those dreams and that allure were simply because he missed his own ocean on Earth. "Does it want something from me? I-I feel like it's killing me. That power burst out of me when Keith or Hunk were about to get sacrificed. I couldn't handle it. And now Haggar put some seal on it and my head is splitting open."

"Calm down," Shiro interrupted, holding his hands out placatingly. "It's gunna be okay. Close your eyes. Listen to that being. It will guide you and help you. Use this space to communicate with it." Shiro began to fade, and Lance felt panic rise to the surface. "Shiro! Shiro, please don't go! I-I dunno what to do!"

"I can't stay. You've got this, Lance." Shiro's voice said as his body drifted away. His smile was warm, proud, like he knew Lance McClain had the greatest potential in the universe. "I believe in you."

\- - -

Lotor arrived at the Castleship, walking past his troops who kept watch over the entrance. "Status report." He commanded to Axca, who was now in charge of the structure.

"The Princess's advisor is still in custody. We found nothing else aside from some strange, slow creature in a hologram room."

The prince sighed. That was likely the Kalteneker he'd been told of. "Right, make sure she's properly seen to. I have a guest who'd be rather cross with me were she to come to harm." Axca looked befuddled by this, but nodded nonetheless. She continued with her report. "Troops have come back reporting sightings of the other paladins. The Red and Yellow paladins were seen fleeing a rebel camp of locals before they lost sight of them. Likely headed north. The green lion has been showing signs of activity but no one has penetrated the vines yet. The Black Lion remains shielded, and it's pilot is still MIA."

"And no news of the Princess, I wager." Lotor mused, walking briskly down the long hallway. Axca confirmed this assumption to be correct. This whole takedown of Voltron was not ending as soon as he would have liked. "What news of the Blue Lion?"

Axca appeared confused. "Blue Lion, sir?"

Lotor stopped, turning to face his general. "Yes. Haggar sent it down to the planet earlier." His general looked uneasy, looking upon on her tablet for any such reports. A cold chill ran down Lotor's spine when his general looked up from her screen.

"Lotor.. we've had no signs of anyone entering the atmosphere until you came today."

Lotor's brows rose in alarm, his teeth bared as he pushed back Acxa and ran for the exit again. "Sir! Sir, where are you going?"

\- - -

Haggar grinned, chuckling maliciously as Lotor left the ship. Looking over her shoulder, she observed the collection of clones she had made of Lance, all laying motionless in pods. She also looked upon the ship she has sent away that contained the Blue Lion. It's destination was known only to herself and her druids.

"That stupid child really thought he could spy on me. Outsmart me." She cackled, walking past a tube that held the still form of Ezor, floating serenely in place. "I've lived far longer. I've built my entire life around collecting knowledge and research. Now that he's distracted and out of the way, it's about time I really started to get to work."

A giant screen was turned on, revealing the large expanse of ocean on the planet's surface. Alongside it was video surveillance of Lance, clearly deep in a trance within the Prince's room.

"Now then.. reveal yourself to me. Show me the path to Oriande."

\- - -

"Make friends with the angry god, he says. It'll be fun and easy, he says."

Lance paced around the astral plane, stomping and huffing impatiently. Meditation was not coming easy. He didn't want to dig deep and listen to anything. The world had betrayed him, Shiro said some cryptic things, and left with some empty compliments. He still didn't trust his team members, after they'd been so flippant about his whereabouts when he went missing, and the subsequent blaming of him after the fact. He didn't much want to indulge Shiro after so quick and fleeting a call. Lastly, the only person over the last few days who was nice to him had basically told him he was silly and naive for wanting to fight for peace.

Yeah, Lance was angry. But it beat feeling numb, he supposed. At least angry, he culd blame someone not himself. It was invigorating.

He didn't want to communicate with this ancient asshole in his brain. He wanted to talk to Blue. He wanted to know why she'd betrayed him. Lance finally sat down, crossing his legs and letting out a rough sigh. "Okay, universe. Find Blue."

\- - -

A great God of Storms clashed in the ethers between realities against the weak and vague force of the Blue Lion. She was on a ship, with only two druid's to guard her. Her eyes lit up, glowing bright gold as she felt the much stronger quintessence of the ancient god. This god was complete, and she was not. Herself and the other lions were then thousand years desaturated by disuse. This ancient power was a lot like one she once possessed. If, maybe one day, she could re-unite with her source...

Oceans. Swimming. Drowning. Lightning. Raining.

Ice. Frost. Frigid oceans and unyielding blizzards.

Find the source.. find the source..

\- - -

Lance gasped, waking up on the floor of Lotor's room. His dream, or vision, whatever it was.. it was fading faster than he could remember it. Something about Blue not being whole. His new room-mate in his brain might have the answers.

He'd have to talk to Haggar. 

Lance stood up, and glanced out the window. The ship was moving. 

....THE SHIP WAS MOVING?

Lance banged on the door, calling out for a guard or anyone. If they were leaving the planet, he'd never save his friends. Blue.. he had to call Blue! Call her through the bond to try and save his team. He sat on the bed, squeezing his eyes closed as he desperately tried to connect with her. But only the god was there, cozy in his mind, poking at the binds of magic. 

His heart was beating furiously in his chest. He felt so helpless. 

Something hit the ship. The impact made him topple from the bed, and onto the cold steel floor. He scrambled to his feet, pressing himself to the large window to try and see what was going on. A smaller craft was firing at the ship as it sped through space. It looked just like Lotor's private vessel that he'd often used against Voltron. Why was Lotor firing on his own ship?

Behind him he heard the door open. Over his shoulder, he saw two druids flanking Haggar as she blocked the doorway. "Take him." She ordered. The two druids fluidly slid across the floor, arms outstretched with magic to bind Lance. His body was hot with terror, his nerves sparking painfully to act. 

Something in his mind snapped. His fingertips burst with electricity. He felt storms in his veins. Arms outstretched to protect himself from the druids, Lance let out a roar of anger. 

Both druids flew back as lightning and rain burst from his hands. Haggar stood dumbfounded at first, then lunged to attack as well. But she was struck from behind, and collapsed to the floor. Bewildered, Lance was faced with Zethrid. "Puny boy, get over here! Before she gets up!"

Lance didn't need to be told twice. He rushed to Zethrid who led him from the room. The pair ran past downed guards, likely the victims of Zethrid's fists. "What's happening!?" Lance panted, leaping over soldier's bodies, his new flight suit giving him ample freedom to move. 

"Questions later!" She growled back, opening the flight bay doors. A craft like Lotor's waited, with Acxa guarding the ship. "Zethrid, hurry!"

All three climbed in, and in a flash, flew from the giant vessel and into open space. They were joined by Lotor's ship, quickly losing sight of Lance's former prison, and even further from the planet.

After hours of asking questions with no answers from the two generals, Lance sat angrily wedged at the back of the small vessel. Eventually they landed on an astroid. Lotor, Zethrid, Axca and Lance met on the surface, all wearing protective helmets linked with comms. 

"What-" Lance growled, storming up to the three taller aliens, "The HECK.. just happened!?"

It was a lot to unpack. Lotor described what he'd been told on the planet, and Lance described his experience in Lotor's room. It was clear. Haggar had lied about Blue and the Clone. She likely lied about a lot of things. 

"And now we're fugitives, and I am missing one of my generals." Lotor said through gritted teeth. 

"Blue didn't betray me." Lance added, defiant with fists clenched tightly. "But I still can't sense her. It's like she's too far away. Just what does Haggar want from me?"

"I haven't a clue. But she'll stop at nothing to get you back, if what you say happened on that ship is true." Lotor looked out at the unending depths of space. His future was uncertain, and he could trust so few people. Had he really, truly believed he'd had control of his empire all this time? Maybe Lance was right.. maybe..

Maybe it was time to start a revolution after all.


	6. Storms on the Horizon

Waking Lions 6

"Clones? She can make clones?" Zethrid repeated angrily, pacing the small spot she occupied. "How do we know one of us isn't a clone? A spy?" She pointed her gun at Lance, who stared her down stone faced. Once upon a time, he might have felt reactive or intimidated. Now? He felt a thousand years old and too tired for this shit. 

"Uh, no. Could the clone do this?" With more confidence than he realized he possessed, he spun around and threw a spell of lightning into the air. "Woah.." He murmured to himself, "I'm really glad that actually worked."

"The bind is gone." Lotor observed, walking to Lance's side. "And you've gained control."

"I.. yeah." Lance stared down at his hands, covered in the thin gloves his flight suit came with. "For now, anyway.." He rolled his shoulders, eager to get the attention off of him. "So? Now what? We need to go back and save my team. My friends.." He still wasn't confident about that last addition, but he wasn't so callus as to abandon those in need. "And we gotta figure out what Haggar wants, right?"

Axca scoffed, brushing aside Zethrid's gun and stepping toward Lotor and Lance. "We don't take orders from you, boy. You're still our prisoner."

"Wrong." Lotor spun to face her, surprising both her and Lance. "He's an ally. We all need to rethink our role in this war. Myself especially." He looked to Lance, inner pain etching the valleys of his face, "I'm sorry, Lance. I've said and done many cruel things. But you were right. I was a coward. If I truly wanted change, I'd have cut ties with the empire ages ago. I havn't been getting anywhere with them, and deep down I knew I never would." He looked to his crew, who seemed lost at Lotor's admission. "I didn't strive for change.. I wanted the empire to accept me. I wanted to belong. You both know that feeling all too well."

Lance, too, knew this feeling. He felt his heart swayed in Lotor's direction. A kinship. A brotherhood. They both knew what it was like to twist yourself up just to gain acceptance. Lance smiled.

"Apology accepted."

\- - -

Haggar screamed, knocking vials to the floor. "My connection to Oriande! Gone! I was so close." She growled, fingers crackling with energy. "Keep tabs on the Blue Lion. Make sure it doesn't move from it's coarse. All may not be lost."

She spun to a door, where she entered and locked it from inside. 

"I must find the paladin again. Only he has the energy and connection enough to find it. To find the source of Altean Alchemy.."

\- - -

Hunk and Keith, having fixed the beacons to where they needed to be, found safety in a tall tree. They were stunned to find many Galra were leaving their posts near the lions. In fact, about a dozen of the small crafts had left the planet altogether. "What happened?" Hunk asked, clinging to the trunk of the tree. Keith shook his head as he held onto a branch and leaned further out. "I don't know.. but they're making it a lot easier for us to take back our lions."

"Take them back?" Hunk pouted, peeking over the edge of the tree to try and see how many soldiers were left. "I dunno, man. That's still a lot of Galra to fight."

"Hunk. You have a canon." 

Hunk met Keith's stone faced flare with a defiant sniff. "Yeah, just one! That's a lot of scary aliens down there, okay?"

Keith didn't respond, but had to admit they were still very much outnumbered. Just then, their comms, which had been dead for days, came to life.

"Keith! Hunk! Do you copy?"

Pidge's voice. Keith and Hunk looked at each other, then grinned. It seemed their beacons were making it possible to communicate via voice without fear of detection. "Keith here. Pidge, there's a bunch of Galra leaving the planet."

"I know." Pidge, from miles away, sat in her pilot's seat as she busily typed away at some code. "I intercepted some communications from their main fleet. Looks like their Prince open fired at his own men. Him and some generals fled with a prisoner. I'll give you three guesses who that is, but you'll only need one."

"Lance!" Hunk yelped, nearly falling from the tree in his excitement. "They have Lance!?"

Allura then chimed in, "So it seems. We also learned that it's Haggar who's taken control of the fleet."

So many questions plagued them, but one seemed most important. "So," Keith breathed, "How do we get him back? Can we take back our lions?"

Allura smiled from where she stood in Green, "Yes. I am already here with Pidge." Her smile vanished, "But Coran is still trapped in the castle. It's heavily guarded. It would be easier to attack it with the lions, but I am not willing to risk damage if we are to make a hasty escape soon after."

"Yeah.." Keith responded, "Even with their numbers halved, we're still at a big disadvantage. But if we just sit here and fret about it all day, nothing gets done." Keith felt a burning to get moving. To do something. The planet was a mess of questions, and outer space equally so. Problems needed solving, and unless Keith could punch those problems, he wasn't interested in debate.  
"We're paladins. Let's start acting like it. Take risks!" 

Hunk groaned. Pidge shrugged. "Me and Allura have called on the Blade's, but there's been no response yet. We can't wait much longer. Supplies are running low, and we're going to have a hard time finding Lance and Shiro if we keep waiting."

Allura was silent. They'd been trying to be as low key and incognito as possible the last couple days. They had little to show for it.

"Keith and Pidge are right." Allura's response received a lot of surprise from the three remaining paladins. "We cannot wait any longer for the Blades. Shiro is still missing.." again "and Lance and Coran need rescue. This is no longer the time for hesitation. There will be no other opportunity to strike as there is now."

"I can distract the Galra with Green." Pidge declared. "I'll start her up as soon as Keith and Hunk are in position to take back their own lions."

"And once we all have our lions?" Hunk asked, "Then what? We still don't have Shiro, and we can't leave his lion behind."

Allura looked out the window, at the ugly purple haze that had taken over her home. "We storm the castle."

\- - -

If being stuck alone in an enemy ship while dealing with doubt and depression was bad enough, becoming displaced from that brief routine was even worse. Now he had no comfy bed to sulk in. No lavish bathroom to smell better in. And worse off, no private place to cry. Without the freedom to release the tension and woes his body and mind were holding, Lance felt he would break the moment anything went south. If only he could sort out his problems rationally, maybe he could work it out. But his problems were a tangled mess of delicate chains, too fine and tiny to possibly untangle. 

Present company did not help.

Certainly, the prince and his generals were not as aggressive about hurting him as Haggar; but they also had no place for him. They were a unit used to working together, even while missing members. But he was not a part of it. The prince had defended him earlier, but it still didn't save Lance entirely from his plight. Sure, he'd finally gotten Lotor to think bigger than the slow game role he'd tried to take on as Emperor. However, the circumstances were less than ideal, and now Lance wondered if maybe his own ideals truly were naive. 

Hating himself for not having the answers, and feeling sorry for himself at the same time, he sat woefully in the back of the small craft. Glaring daggers at the back of their heads, he wondered what was the point of having these new fancy powers if he couldn't use them. 

"Where are we going?" Lance asked again for the tenth time. He received no answer; likely because they had none, but they never owned up to it.

Grasping at his head, Lance slumped forward in his seat, feeling the burn of frustration sear through his veins. He could blow up this whole ship. He knew he could. Somehow his very genetic code knew the limitations of this new power. Power that feasted on the quintessence that circulated endlessly in his blood. Yet he knew doing so would not truly help him, even if it would feel good at first. After all, it would kill him, right? Yeah, floating in space for the rest of forever after exploding a ship he was in? Not a great idea.

But he couldn't stop how angry he felt. Zethrid and Acxa whispering to Lotor, keeping Lance completely in the dark. 

I wanna go home, he thought to himself. Let this be a dream and make everything go back to normal. 

Maybe he should go back home, he thought some more. Maybe he'd ditch the prince and his cronies. Maybe he'd give up on the universe, and just throw himself at the mercy of outer space. 

He sneezed, and realized he'd somehow made the whole area around himself quite chilly. Looking up sheepishly, he realized the others had noticed too. 

"Put the experiment in the cargo hold." Zethrid grouched. 

Lotor grimaced, and got up to escort Lance out. 

"No no. Allow me." Lance sneered, sitting up violently and stomping his way to the back of the ship. Really, the whole of the ship only allowed room for the bridge up front, and the larger cargo hold where Zethrid's smaller craft rested. It wasn't a ship made for long journeys. It had no barracks or places to eat or relieve oneself. Lance sat down in a corner, feeling the cold of the sterile room seep through his flight suit. At least he had the jacket Lotor had made special for him. The man puzzled him exceedingly. One minute he was doting and kind, the next he was cold and indifferent. Lance wanted to go back to hating the man unconditionally, but such kindnesses were hard to forget.

"Find Blue.." He trembled as he whispered to himself, closing his eyes and diving deep into his own mind.

The world faded to black, and soon the spiralling galaxies of the astral plane were all that he saw. He wondered if Shiro was still out here, looking for... who knows what. He seemed to be on his own strange mission. Lance paced the endless expanse of space, feeling in his heart the tug of his lion. She was looking for something, right? The other half of her whole. He could almost feel her and hear her like he used to. Yet she was too far to truly reach.   
A tug of something vile caught his attention. Something else was following Blue.

He looked and found a glowing purple thread linking himself to Blue, but also someone else. Someone... with the silhouette of the witch.

"What does Haggar want with Blue?" Lance breathed, chills making his skin slick with sweat. He felt ill. He felt weakened. Whatever she wanted, it would definitely spell the end of him and Blue. And so much more.

"Blue, tell me. What are you looking for?"

A flash of white, the roar of a lion, and a great, powerful magic that had unimaginable potential. Blue was being drawn to something, maybe against her will, or maybe she couldn't help it. It felt like a great well, or the endless roots of a life tree. The source of all magic.

He wasn't sure if this had been Haggar's plan all along, seeing as he'd been singled out during that conflict with the Galra and Voltron. But if it was? Lance had to stop it.

"Blue! Come back! She's going to use you to... do.." What? Destroy the world? Gain limitless magic? He had no idea. But it was Haggar, so it had to be awful.

"Please, Blue!!" Lance screamed out, feeling helpless as he felt the link between them weaken. 

Lance snapped back to the real world, and found Lotor staring down at him.

"Lance it's colder than death in here. What are yo-"

"Haggar!" Lance leapt up, gripping Lotor's arms, "Haggar is after an unlimited power source! I think it might even be the source of the lion's powers."

Lotor's eyes widened, and he breathed out almost inaudibly, "Oriande..."

\- - -

Shiro fought against a tide of energy. This cyclone in space was containing a great power. The power that seemed to be the cause of their current plight. But he could not get near it. Some great power kept him back. He was not worthy. He pleaded, desperately wishing to save Voltron. Hoping to borrow enough power to do just that. He would give everything he was for such a chance.

The beast did not give him power. But it did grant him a warning. Someone of his crew was soon to be in great danger, and he'd best go back to his body immediately.

\- - -

The castle was theirs.

The operation had been difficult. However, with perseverance and a great deal of luck and ingenuity, they'd won the battle. However, Black was still out in the forest, and the Galra had not left the planet. 

"Keith, you can pilot Black. You've done it before." Allura commanded, and Keith was adamant he try, if only to see if Shiro was still in there, injured or worse. Coran, perfectly healthy and eager to help, spun from one screen to the next, cleaning out all the Galran code from messing up the Castle's functions. "The castle will cover you, and the other lions will try and keep the enemy at bay."

With a plan set in motion, Keith got ready to fall from the castle, as the base lifted and they floated to their destination.

\- - -

The Blue Lion, Lance's link to her, all fuelled by the energy of the God of Storms. All of them were the perfect brew for Haggar. The light that guided her to Oriande was as strong as ever.

She watched with manic anticipation as the Blue Lion's ship headed straight for a strange storm. Many fallen ships lay in ruins around it's perimeter. She felt the call of the beast. She felt her cheeks burn with the mark of the chosen.

"It's finally time."


	7. Do Not Wake the White Lion

Waking Lions 7

They were racing through space, knowing it may very well be too late before they got there. If Haggar had found Oriande, no one would stand a chance against her magic. No one except...

Lance.

With the way he'd managed to get on equal footing with the god of storms, his control of that being's power was the only thing that could save the universe.

Lotor and Lance stood at the bow of the bridge, looking out at the wasteland of broken ship parts, and at the imposing form of Haggar's ship. Systems went down soon after, and the generals ran around trying to figure out why.

"This is as far as we go." Lotor spoke, eyes set on the horizon. As he did, Lance watched Altean markings glow from some hidden place under his skin.

"Lotor!" He pointed up rudely, gesturing to his face. "Your.. face!"

Lotor gave him a quizzical stare, touching his cheeks in a curious way. "Lance.. do you know much about Oriande?"

"Only what you broke down for me on the way here."

"If Haggar has already left the ship, then you won't be able to go after her. Only chosen Alteans can enter." 

Lance stared out the window. If Haggar was already in there, then they were too late. A powered up Haggar was not something Lance wanted to face. "Then we have to get on that ship."

\- - -

"Shiro!"

Shiro felt someone slapping his face hurriedly. Groggy, and feeling like he had the worst hangover, he opened his eyes to see Keith staring down at him. "You were in here all this time?" He asked in utter dismay. The idea he could have come here at any time...

"I..." Shiro's journey slowly came back to him, and he struggled to sit up. "Keith.. we have to go.."

"What? Slow down, you're clearly dehydrated."

But Shiro felt there was very little time. He knew who was in danger. He knew who was after the source of magic. "Now, Keith!" Taking the controls, Shiro got the lion moving enough to jolt Keith into action. The Red paladin left Black and headed for his own lion. Shiro felt panic rip through him. All throughout his journey, looking for where Black had been leading him, he'd had this nagging feeling that something big and awful was about to happen. The anticipation made the realization so much worse.

"Allura!" Shiro called through the comms, "Get ready to warp as soon as we get there."

"Shiro!? I--"

"Lance is in danger, and Haggar is about to claim the source of all Altean magic!"

\- - -

Lance followed Lotor and the generals, all the while contemplating the partnership he had with the Storm God. He still wasn't sure why this powerful being hitched a ride off of it's planet and into him. Any time he tried to talk to it, understand it, all he got were images he couldn't interpret; Ocean. Sinking. Drowning. Maybe he just wasn't smart enough, or grand enough. Maybe if a Prince or Mage or someone not him had been given such power...

Soldiers came around the corner and began shooting. Ducking for cover, their team split into two, with Lance paired with Lotor. Lance broought up his borrowed rifle and fired a small amount of properly aimed shots, taking out each soldier that came 'round the corner before they had time to react.

He heard Zethrid give a loud, impressed whistle, "I'm sold. He can join up with us any time." 

Lance felt himself blush with pride.

The two pairs split off to cover more ground. Lance continued to pick off incoming soldiers, while Lotor took care of anyone at close range. Finally, they arrived at a great door that leaked malicious energy.

"Haggar is in there." Lotor said triumphantly. "I can feel it. We're not too late."

Lotor overrode the security on the door and the pair ran inside.

A flash of purple struck Lotor in the chest. He gave a strangled cry as the crackling power ran through his nervous system, bringing the mighty prince to his knees. Lance froze only a moment, conquering his horror to aim a shot at Haggar's head. However, the gun was ripped from his grasp by a lighting quick spell by Haggar, sending it halfway across the room. Lance was soon snared with the same energy, wrapping his arms to his torso and sending him across the room.

He hit a wall, sliding down with a grunt. He could barely breathe, let alone try and sync with the storm god. 

"Little blue boy." The witch cackled, sending Lotor flying against another wall just for kicks. "I might have needed you once. But no more. I've already been to Oriande."

Lance gasped, desperately hoping that the witch was bluffing, that he had more time. "What do you want?" He croaked, lifting himself up with trembling arms. "What's this all for?"

"To become a god."

It was said so simply. The very statement made the room eerily empty of all sound and purpose. To become a god. That's what she wanted? 

"Why?" He asked in disbelief. 

"A small mind such as yours could never dream of anything so big." She said with a chuckle. "The first time I observed quintessence and all it could do? I yearned to learn more. And when I'd learned all I could, I yearned for the power and longevity it possessed. I know I can do it. And I will. I'll take all of the lions of Voltron. I'll use them to create something that can control space. Time. Planets. I could blink and send realities into the void. I could snap my fingers and send black holes running. One thought, and I could create life. One sigh, and I might take it all away."

This was making Lance want to vomit. All her talk on the ship before of making him quit Voltron and come to her side. What had that been to her? Did she ever think clearly about anything? Was this some random power trip for shits and giggles?

Well, that didn't matter. As hopeless as her aspirations made him feel, it also solidified what he'd have to do.

"You'll never become a god. And you'll never have Blue."

Icy cold seeped into his skin. He smelled the fresh scent of ozone, felt the tickle of lightning at his finger tips. He could feel Blue, no too far from where they were located. Haggar sensed he could easily be more powerful than herself, and moved to send her tainted quintessence his way. He felt the purple energy enter his system, infect his mind and heart. But he would not give in. The unholy power tried to pull all of his insecurities into his path. He would not abide them. He had a goal, and he heard a roar from nearby so passionate and beautiful he could not help but scream her name.

"BLUE!"

At the same time he sent a storm push Haggar to the very edge of the room, a beam of ice sliced through the ship into her very path.

The after math was not pretty. It was red, grotesque, and in less than a second, all was being sucked out into the void of outer space. Spinning and tumbling, Lance saw flashes of stars and rubble fly by as his body went catapulting out into nothingness. He closed his eyes tightly, when a great metal maw took him in.

His body hit solid firmness. Blue. He was inside Blue. Even with his helmet on, Lance felt himself breathe perfect air into his lungs. "You're back, baby. Miss me?"

A purr rumbled through his body, and he felt his heart warm like a campfire. His comms lit up, as the generals found Lotor, and took him back to their own ship. 

"Hasta la vista, Princey boy." Lance said into the comms.

"Lance?" Lotor croaked. "Where.. are you going?"

Lance smiled, sitting himself down into his old pilot's seat. "Back to Voltron."

"Voltron!" Zethrid roared. "Why them? You'd be much better off with us. You told us yourself. They treat you like-"

"It's okay." Lance smiled, leaning back in his chair. "I know I'm important now. I know. But yeah, they've been shitty. But that doesn't mean I have to run away. I know we can fix things. I just have to be up front about my feelings."

He moved the controls, and he got the feeling Blue knew exactly where to go.

"Besides. I'm a paladin. And the universe won't save itself." He looked back at the glowing cyclone. A promise of power. An entity much like the god hiding in his brain. "Do me a favour, Lotor? Don't let anyone get inside that place. Gods n stuff belong in fairytales."

\- - -

The castle of lions came out of warp to find two Galran ships leaving, and the Blue Lion heading right for them. Before any of them had the chance to call to Lance, he was calling first.

"Hey guys! Yeah, yeah your man Lance just single handedly murdered an ugly Space Witch and sent Prince Loreal and his cronies to fix an empire. Do me a favour and let's double back to the acid rain planet? I need to drop off a hitchhiker."

\- - -

>>Epilogue Next time, filled with lot's of One on One time with Lance, and finally getting all the messy feelings and broken bonds all fixed up. That may take longer, so it may be more than a week. Look forward to it! I want it to be perfect.<<


End file.
